New Orleans mayor declares state of emergency after cyberattack

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell (D) declared a state of emergency in the city on Friday following a cyberattack.

The emergency declaration said that the “cybersecurity incident” occurred on Friday morning and that there is “significant risk that the emergency is ongoing.”

It added that there is also a risk of “the endangerment of property of the people of” New Orleans.

A declaration of a state of emergency has been filed with the Civil District Court in connection with today’s cyber security event. pic.twitter.com/OQXDGv7JS4

— The City Of New Orleans (@CityOfNOLA) December 13, 2019

According to tweets from the city’s emergency preparedness campaign, employees were told to shut off their computers, unplug their devices and disconnect from Wi-Fi. 

The city’s website went down, but its emergency communications systems were still operating. 

New Orleans authorities were receiving cybersecurity resources from the Louisiana State Police, the FBI, the Louisiana National Guard and the Secret Service.

The incident follows previous attacks in Louisiana, including an incident affecting multiple state agencies last month.