A 31-year-old British man is one of 14 people who were killed when an alleged Islamic State supporter drove a truck into crowds celebrating the New Year in New Orleans.

Edward Pettifer, from Chelsea, west London was killed in the attack, the Metropolitan Police confirmed.

His family said it was “devastated” by his death.

“He was a wonderful son, brother, grandson, nephew and a friend to so many,” the family said in a statement.

“We will all miss him terribly. Our thoughts are with the other families who have lost their family members due to this terrible attack. We request that we can grieve the loss of Ed as a family in private.”

New Orleans’ coroner said the preliminary cause of death for Mr Pettifer was blunt force injuries.

Dozens of people were injured when 42-year-old army veteran Shamsud-Din Jabbar‘s rented truck rammed into people in New Orleans’ famous Bourbon Street in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said the attack was “premeditated” and an “evil” act of terrorism, and added Jabbar was “100% inspired by ISIS”, also known as Islamic State.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office told Sky News: “We are supporting the family of a British national who has died in New Orleans and are in contact with local authorities.”

The coroner has also identified the majority of the victims in the attack.

They are:

• Andrew Dauphin, 26, from Montgomery, Alabama
• Kareem Badawi, 23, from Baton Rouge, Louisiana
• Brandon Taylor, 43, from Harvey, Louisiana
• Hubert Gauthreaux, 21, from Gretna, Louisiana
• Matthew Tenedorio, 25, from Picayune, Mississippi
• Ni’Kyra Dedeaux, 18, from Gulfport, Mississippi
• Nicole Perez, 27, from Metairie, Louisiana
• Reggie Hunter, 37, from Prairieville, Louisiana
• Martin Bech, 27, from New York City, New York
• Terrence Kennedy, 63, from New Orleans, Louisiana
• Elliot Wilkinson, 40, from Slidell, Louisiana
• William DiMaio, 25, from Holmdel, New Jersey

The identity of one other victim is unknown, with efforts to identity the female continuing.

The preliminary cause of death for all the victims is blunt force injuries, according to the New Orleans coroner.

The FBI has also revealed that before his attack, Jabbar set fire to a house he had rented in an effort to destroy evidence.

He had placed accelerants throughout the house in his effort to destroy it, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms.

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But the fire, which was started in the hallway, had extinguished itself before spreading to other rooms.

Bomb-making materials were found both at the rented accommodation in New Orleans and Jabbar’s home in Houston, Texas. A home-made device suspected of being a rifle silencer was also found in the New Orleans home.

Federal authorities also revealed on Friday that Jabbar had reserved the vehicle used in the deadly attack more than six weeks earlier.

The FBI has said 35 people were injured in the attack, but it expects this number to rise in the coming days as more people go to hospital or contact the bureau.

The University Medical Centre New Orleans said it treated 30 patients who were injured in the attack. Some 13 remain in the hospital’s care, including eight in the intensive care unit.

Meanwhile, federal investigators say Jabbar used a very rare explosive compound in the two functional improvised explosive devices (IEDs) placed by him before the attack, according to Sky’s US partner network NBC News.

The explosive has never been used in any US or European terror attack, officials said. Authorities are now investigating how Jabbar knew how to make this homemade explosive, and why the IEDs did not go off.

Nigel Farage has said Tommy Robinson “won’t be” joining Reform UK after Elon Musk showed support for the jailed far-right activist on social media.

The billionaire owner of X, who has spoken positively about Reform UK and is reportedly considering making a donation to the party, has been critical of the government’s handling of child sexual exploitation across a number of towns and cities more than a decade ago.

While the Reform UK leader described the billionaire owner of X as “an absolute hero figure, particularly to young people in this country”, he distanced himself and his party from Robinson, who is currently serving an 18-month prison sentence for contempt of court.

Mr Musk endorsed the far-right activist and claimed Robinson was “telling the truth” about grooming gangs, writing on X: “Free Tommy Robinson”.

Speaking to broadcasters ahead of the start of Reform UK’s East Midlands Conference tonight, party leader Mr Farage did not directly address Mr Musk’s comments, but said: “He has a whole range of opinions, some of which I agree with very strongly, and others of which I’m more reticent about.”

He went on to say that having Mr Musk’s support is “very helpful to our cause”, describing him as “an absolute hero figure, particularly to young people in this country”.

He continued: “Everyone says, well, what about his comments on Tommy Robinson? Look, my position is perfectly clear on that. I never wanted Tommy Robinson to join UKIP, I don’t want him to join Reform UK, and he won’t be.”

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Later on GB News, Mr Farage added that Mr Musk “sees Robinson as one of these people that fought against the grooming gangs”.

“But of course the truth is Tommy Robinson’s in prison not for that, but for contempt of court,” he said.

Mr Farage added: “We’re a political party aiming to win the next general election. He’s not what we need.”

How did Elon Musk become involved?

The online campaign from Mr Musk began after it emerged that Home Office minister Jess Phillips had denied requests from Oldham Council to lead a public inquiry into child sexual exploitation in the borough, as the Conservatives had done in 2022.

In a letter to the authority in Greater Manchester, Ms Phillips said she believes it is “for Oldham Council alone to decide to commission an inquiry into child sexual exploitation locally, rather than for the government to intervene”.

An Oldham Council spokesman previously said: “Survivors sit at the heart of our work to end child sexual exploitation. Whatever happens in terms of future inquiries, we have promised them that their wishes will be paramount, and we will not renege on that pledge.”

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Mr Musk posted on X multiple times about the scandal, and claimed Sir Keir Starmer had failed to bring “rape gangs” to justice when he led the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). In 2013, Sir Keir introduced new guidelines for how child sexual abuse victims should be treated and how a case should be built and presented in court.

The SpaceX and Tesla boss also endorsed posts about Robinson.

Robinson, who is 42 years old and whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, admitted at Woolwich Crown Court in October to breaching an injunction banning him from repeating libellous allegations against a Syrian refugee schoolboy, after he was successfully sued for libel in 2021.

Warnings have been issued for heavy snow and freezing rain over the weekend, with icy weather expected to cause disruption across large parts of the UK.

Two amber and two yellow alerts have been issued by the Met Office across most of the country for both Saturday and Sunday.

Forecasters say power cuts are likely and that vehicles could become stranded on roads as wintry conditions continue. Trains and flights could also be delayed or cancelled.

There is a “good chance” that rural communities could be cut off, with up to 30cm of snowfall expected in some areas, the Met Office said. Some “significant accumulations” of snow are possible in parts of the Midlands and the North.

Jason Kelly, Met Office chief forecaster, said that freezing rain – when rain instantly freezes on cold surfaces on the ground – is also a risk in those areas, but even more so in Wales, and could lead to “treacherous conditions in places”.

Icy conditions earlier in the week are being considered by police as a possible factor in a collision in Lincolnshire on Thursday night, in which a seven-month-old baby was killed.

Where are the Met Office amber warnings in place?

• From 6pm Saturday to midday Sunday, an amber warning for snow and freezing rain covers most of Wales and central England, including the Midlands and Liverpool and Manchester in the North West
• From 9pm on Saturday to midnight on Sunday, a second warning for snow covers most of northern England, including Leeds, Sheffield and the Lake District

Between 3cm and 7cm of snowfall is predicted widely in both areas, while snow may mix with rain at times in lower-lying areas, forecasters said.

Less severe yellow warnings also cover most of England, Wales and Scotland, and part of Northern Ireland, covering different periods of time throughout the weekend.

Meanwhile, cold weather health alerts issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also remain in place across England ahead of a week of low temperatures.

Amber alerts will run until 8 January, meaning a rise in deaths is likely, the agency said.

Dr Agostinho Sousa, the agency’s head of extreme events and health protection, said the low temperatures could have “a serious impact on the health of some people, including those aged 65 and over and those with pre-existing health conditions”.

He urged people to “check in on friends, family and neighbours that are most vulnerable” who could be more at risk of heart attacks, strokes and chest infections.

Several snow-ice warnings have also been issued across Ireland. Significant snowfall accumulations are expected in Carlow, Kilkenny, Wicklow, Clare, Limerick and Tipperary for 24 hours from 5pm on Saturday, forecasters at Met Eireann said, creating difficult travelling conditions and poor visibility.

Anyone planning to travel over the weekend is advised by National Highways to check their vehicle, keep their distance on the roads, and pack a “snow kit” of blankets, food, water and a shovel.

Network Rail has said there is a specially equipped winter fleet to keep the railway running throughout winter, while UK airports have also been making preparations for the cold snap.

Some football games have already been called off this weekend, including Cheltenham’s match against League Two leaders Walsall, Halifax’s National League home game against Fylde, and Friday night’s Scottish Championship game between Airdrie and leaders Falkirk.

Saturday’s race meeting at Newcastle has also been abandoned due to the course being frozen.

Charity boss Simon Francis, from the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, has given his advice to anyone struggling with energy bills during the cold snap, saying people should first contact their energy provider.

“All of them have to have schemes in place to help those people, especially the vulnerable,” he told Sky News.

“It’s not enough. We know it’s not enough. But they do have schemes available, and you should certainly speak to them if you are feeling that your home is getting cold and damp, and you can’t afford to put the heating on.”

Milder air will briefly cover some southern areas during the weekend before colder conditions return next week, the Met Office said.

Temperatures would remain below average, said deputy chief forecaster Dan Holley.