Waltrip High School Band Safe After Deadly New Orleans Crash
NEW ORLEANS – Students, staff, and chaperones from Houston ISD’s Waltrip High School marching band are safe following a deadly New Year’s Day crash in New Orleans. The band had initially been prohibited from attending the Sugar Bowl performance in September, but the decision was reversed after Houston Mayor John Whitmire offered a police escort.
The band was one of five national teams selected to perform at the 2025 Sugar Bowl, and parents and students had been actively fundraising for the trip. However, concerns about safety in New Orleans on New Year’s Day, voiced by North Area superintendent Orlando Riddick, had initially led to the cancellation. Mayor Whitmire intervened, offering a Houston Police Department escort, which ultimately secured the band’s participation.
Following the reversal, HISD Superintendent Mike Miles reassured parents in an email, stating, “I understand the Division Leadership had safety concerns about this trip, and while student safety and security is always our top priority, I am confident we can safeguard our students and provide them with this incredible opportunity… I am assigning HISD PD officers to travel with the band.”
Houston ISD confirmed that all students, parents, and staff are safe and accounted for, currently staying in their hotel. No HISD members were near the site of the Bourbon Street crash that killed ten and injured dozens. All scheduled activities have been postponed. The group is accompanied by six HISD PD officers, fourteen parent chaperones, and five HISD staff members, including Waltrip Principal Jeanette Cortez. HISD PD Chief Shamara Garner is maintaining contact with New Orleans law enforcement.
Mayor Whitmire stated he would not comment on the ongoing investigation but confirmed the students’ safe return to Houston. Jeff Hundley, CEO of the Sugar Bowl, expressed the committee’s devastation and offered condolences to the victims and their families. The Sugar Bowl is actively engaging with authorities on all levels.