KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The excitement of the New Year turned into chaos following Wednesday morning's terror attack in New Orleans.  The FBI says a 42-year-old man from Texas named Shamsud-Din Jabbar killed at least 10 people and hurt 35 others when he sped around a police cruiser that was blocking off Bourbon Street, a popular tourist destination. The agency said an Islamic State group flag was recovered in the suspect’s vehicle along with a handgun, AR-15 style rifle, and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Man killed, another injured in New Year’s Eve shooting in Kansas City "This is a massive attack, one that we haven't seen in quite a long time," said Randy Sutton, a retired Las Vegas police lieutenant with 30 years of experience. Sutton also founded The Wounded Blue, a nationwide charitable organization that improves the lives of injured and disabled law enforcement officers. He called New Orleans a soft target for two reasons: the large amount of people in one area and no constructive barriers to keep attackers out. "If you can drive a vehicle on a sidewalk and get around a barrier, the barrier is worthless." During a Wednesday press conference, New Orleans law enforcement officials said bollards (which are short, vertical posts made of steel, aluminum, or concrete and serve as a physical barrier) are used to prevent traffic on Bourbon Street but were not operable at the time of the attack.  Anthony Burnside, a security specialist who's worked big events like the Academy Awards and the Grammys, said that had those barriers been in place completely, he doesn't think the attack would have been as horrific or even happened at all. "[The suspect] just caught [law enforcement] at a point to where they were hardening the target, they were fixing it, and he just took advantage of a weakness that he saw.” Hardening the target means strengthening security, whether for a building or person, to protect it in the event of an attack or to reduce the risk of one. Burnside said people like Shamsud-Din Jabbar look for loopholes and weaknesses, to which Sutton added that law enforcement can't target harden every place people will gather. "If it wasn’t New Orleans on this particular night, it would’ve been somewhere else if the target was soft enough," Sutton said.  The attack, which happened during one of the biggest holidays of the year, likely means changes will happen to upcoming events in bigger cities, like here in Kansas City. The Big 12 Men's Basketball Championship will happen March 11-15 at T-Mobile Center, with the potential for yet another Super Bowl Victory parade in February in the downtown area. "Yes, and if it doesn't, it should. Right after, in Los Angeles when we do the award shows, security is augmented immediately afterwards," added Burnside. Kansas City, Kansas sees record-low homicides in 2024, mayor reacts He said discussions are happening now when it comes to securing local events, however, he's not involved in those. While we will be able to see some of the protocols, for others we won't. "Security should always be living and breathing; always changing on the dime if necessary. The threat matrix is constantly changing, it’s not cookie-cutter. There’s never a cookie-cutter approach to laying out security -- it’s all unique and customized to the environment that you’re visiting.” Despite this, both men don't want people to live in fear of what could happen but to always be aware of their surroundings. Their advice? Be careful where you go, know where the exits are, and be ready to expect the unexpected. Chances are nothing will happen, but just stay a little switched on.