Government

Seaside Heights Purchases ‘Rapid Defense’ Barriers to Prevent New Orleans-Like Tragedy

by
Daniel Nee
August 25, 2025

Meridian Archer 1200 barriers in use in Torrance, Calif., 2025. (Credit: Meridian Rapid Defense)

Seaside Heights officials are purchasing sets of “rapid defense” barriers that can be placed around large public events to prevent both accidental or intentional vehicle-ramming incidents that could threaten attendees.

The borough previous received grant funding for some barricades along the boardwalk, and will now purchase at least two mobile systems that can be moved from place-to-place to protect specific events. The barriers are the same types that were owned by the city of New Orleans – but were not properly deployed – last New Year’s Eve when a man drove a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing at least 14 people and injuring over 50 others.

“These are the steel barriers,” said Borough Administrator Christopher Vaz, explaining that they can serve a dual use to protect crowds at public events, but can also be set up to protect the safety of the borough’s Public Works staff when they are working on infrastructure projects.

Archer 1200 Mobile Defense Barriers. (Credit: Meridian Rapid Defense)

The borough awarded a $245,491 contract last week to Meridian Rapid Defense for the purchase of two mobile systems, with the option to purchase additional barriers if needed. Specifically, the borough will purchase the Archer 1200 HVM (Hostile Vehicle Mitigation) system. The Archer 1200 is a “Drop and Stop” anti-ram vehicle barrier that “protects people and critical infrastructure by stopping unauthorized vehicle access,” the company states on its website. It is ideal for “entry points, roadways, construction sites, and public events, [and] it is easy to deploy in under 10 minutes.”

The units can even be re-deployed after absorbing an impact, Meridian said.

Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old American citizen, was charged in the New Orleans attack, allegedly after pledging allegiance to the Islamic State terrorist group. He would later say he was motivated to drive his pickup truck into the crowd in order to highlight the “war between the believers and the disbelievers.” While such attacks may not top the concerns of most beach visitors, neighboring Seaside Park had a brush with international terrorism when an ISIS-inspired attack was carried out via the placement of a bomb inside a garbage can along the boardwalk as a Marine Corps charity 5K run was about to begin. A slight delay in the start of the race helped avert tragedy. The perpetrator of the Seaside Park attack was linked to others in New York and later sentenced to life in prison.