How the secret service, 2,000 cops and years of intense planning kept Taylor Swift and Donald Trump safe at the Super Bowl

The greeting aft the nighttime before, immoderate unit astatine Louis Armstrong airdrome were decked retired successful Eagles green. They wore custom-made shot jerseys that read: 'MSY KREWE' and the No 59. 

It was chaos arsenic thousands of visitors rushed retired of New Orleans but, connected Monday, information crews were successful precocious spirits: aft each of the fears and and each of the planning, Super Bowl LIX had passed without large catastrophe.

Donald Trump had been and gone. Taylor Swift had jetted in. So had Kendrick Lamar and Lionel Messi and Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts and astir 100,000 fans. All little than 50 days aft New Orleans was devastated by a deadly violent attack.

It took a 'herculean' effort to unafraid the metropolis - connected the ground, connected the water, online and successful the air. An 'incredibly robust' program that progressive good implicit 2,000 instrumentality enforcement agents. 

Planning had begun 2 years ago; the archetypal gathering blocks of the information perimeter were enactment successful spot little than a week aft the January 1 attack. All for 7 days starring up to Super Bowl Sunday.

Among those deployed? The Secret Service, SWAT teams, snipers, sniffer dogs, the FBI and 'weapons of wide demolition coordinators'. Swift's erstwhile sojourn during her 'Eras Tour' served arsenic a utile adust run; the New Year's onslaught was - successful the words of 1 information adept - a 'wake-up call'.

But adjacent then, the authorities were incapable to forestall tragedy. Last Wednesday, Adan Manzano - a sports newsman - was recovered dormant successful his edifice adjacent Louis Armstrong airport. 

Danette Colbert, who has been dubbed the 'Bourbon Street Hustler' and was seen entering his hotel successful chilling information footage, has been arrested implicit the incident.

Then, connected gameday, a antheral hired arsenic a 'participant' to enactment connected the halftime show unfurled a dual Sudanese-Palestinian emblem during the halftime show.

It was an embarrassment for the authorities but - successful galore ways - a fortunate escape. A reminder that, nary substance the constabulary and information presence, thing tin ever spell very, precise wrong. 

Last Monday morning, arsenic the satellite began to get successful New Orleans, the NFL's caput of information Cathy Lanier addressed the media.

'Today, we basal present earlier you arsenic a unified team,' she said arsenic the authorities outlined their exhaustive information measures. '(We are) assured successful our strategy (and) prepared to accommodate if needed.’

Twenty 4 hours later, Trump confirmed that helium would go the archetypal sitting president to ever be a Super Bowl. What is it they accidental astir best-laid plans?

Suddenly, an already monumental cognition was ratcheted up different fewer notches.  Suddenly, they had to support a Commander-in-Chief who - lone months earlier - had travel wrong inches of assassination. 

New Orleans was already connected edge. 'Stay safe' was the emblematic parting connection from taxi drivers and the French Quarter, wherever thousands of fans headed for a week-long party, was a surreal sight.

At 1 entranceway to Bourbon Street, determination was a haunting memorial to the 14 radical killed, erstwhile Shamsud-Din Jabbar rammed his motortruck into revelers celebrating New Year's Eve.

Then, connected virtually each corner, the subject had acceptable up barricades featuring equipped soldiers and armored vehicles and blinding floodlights. It was dissimilar thing the country had ever seen. But it didn't halt radical enjoying themselves.

Bill Belichick and his woman Jordon Hudson popped into Pat O'Brien's, a fashionable Irish bar, pursuing the NFL Honors ceremony. As the mates were aboriginal driven home, they deed a roadblock.

A sniffer canine did a thigh of the car earlier the broadside thoroughfare to their edifice was yet opened. No 1 was allowed to bypass information - nary substance however galore Super Bowl rings they person won.

‘The 1 happening that is changeless is evil, but an implementation of that evil changes consistently,' Colonel Robert Hodges of the Louisiana State Police warned.

So the authorities guarded against everything, each to guarantee - successful the words of Lanier - ‘that the safest spot to beryllium this play volition be... nether the information umbrella that this squad has enactment together.'

More than 2 twelve national agencies played their portion successful what 1 information adept called a 'herculean task'. 'We unrecorded successful a precise unsettling world,' they told DailyMail.com. 'Terrorism comes successful each shapes and sizes, truthful bash progressive shooters and lone wolves.' So however tin you legislate against 1 atrocious actor?

They closed roads astir the Superdome. They scoured for the aerial for drones. They enactment successful much information cameras. They launched an anti-human trafficking campaign. They patrolled the Mississippi river.

They monitored the net for threats of 'cyber onslaught from a transgression menace histrion oregon hostile federation state'. They positioned soldiers extracurricular the Chiefs' hotel. They leaned connected planetary partners and they urged fans to study thing suspicious.

They deployed weaponry technicians and WMD coordinators and SWAT teams. They brought successful much than 450 FBI personnel, 350 National Guard troops and 700 radical from the Department of Homeland Security. 

The aim? To guarantee fans saw 'a oversea of blue' and ‘to marque definite that we tin spell guardant and observe this large game… unneurotic successful a mode that reflects the unity of the United States of America.’ 

By gameday, this oversea of bluish was dotted with black. There was thing inconspicuous astir the Secret Service. Agents had their affiliation printed crossed their achromatic uniforms arsenic they manned information gates, wherever smiling volunteers had been stationed earlier successful the week. 

Fans were herded up ramps, from which soldiers were disposable connected roofs surrounding the stadium. Some had guns acceptable up connected tripods, trained connected the main roads overlooking the Superdome. Flight restrictions were enactment successful spot for drones and aircrafts wrong 30 nautical miles of the stadium.

Inside the information perimeter, however, a enactment had breached retired by lunchtime. Fans flocked to concerts and tailgates and 'bistreaux'. In 1 spot, quaint tables and chairs were acceptable up for al fresco dining.

As kickoff approached, however, 1 country of the Superdome turned frenetic. Up connected the 4th floor, wherever the affluent and celebrated and precise fortunate were filtering into their suites, information officers attempted to bring immoderate order.

Black curtains were erected crossed the walkways astir Trump's suite. Earlier successful the day, the authorities restricted aerial abstraction and past cleared the roads arsenic the president rushed from Florida to New Orleans to drawback the game.

Later, postulation was occasionally stopped betwixt the suites, too. There was small fanfare arsenic Donald Trump Jr. wandered 1 of the stadium corridors but everyone had to halt arsenic Brett Baier of Fox News was led towards the president's box. 

At 1 point, the achromatic curtains were pulled crossed - blocking anyone's presumption of, and way to, Trump's suite. More blinds were hung astir the doorway to the box, portion information agents added yet different furniture of protection. Speaker Mike Johnson was among those fto down the curtain.  

Around the aforesaid clip - with kickoff accelerated approaching, Swift was led past the commotion towards her ain suite. 

Her information item were powerless a fewer minutes later, erstwhile the popular prima appeared connected the large surface and large boos rung out.

But questions volition beryllium asked astir however the protestor was allowed to gaffe done the net. It was a reminder that holes tin beryllium recovered successful adjacent the best-laid plans. Thankfully his stunt did not crook into thing much, overmuch worse.