Katrina Situation Report

CURRENT SITUATION:

LOUISIANA: State police were ordered to close all roads while officials assess the catastrophic damage. In Baton Rouge, Gov. Kathleen Blanco told those who had fled their homes to remain where they were and that the roads are flooded, the power is out, the phones are down and many trees are down. A levee to the north of New Orleans was breached and some parts of the city were under 20 feet of water.

Col. Rich Wagenaar of the Army Corps of Engineers said a breach in the eastern part of the city was causing flooding and ``significant evacuations'' in Orleans and St. Bernard parishes. It is not known how many people were affected. Authorities said there was also a levee breach in the western part of the city that began Monday afternoon and may have grown overnight. Winds early Tuesday were still a dangerous 60 mph. "It's too dangerous to come home. We've got a massive search-and-rescue situation going on. We've pulled literally hundreds of people out of the waters. We believe there are hundreds more out there," Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco said. Military and Coast Guard helicopters continued well into the night as Wildlife and Fisheries agents arrived to relieve exhausted fire crews.

MISSISSIPPI: Tree trunks, downed power lines and trees, and chunks of broken concrete in the streets hampered rescue efforts. Swirling water in many areas contained hidden dangers. Crews worked to clear highways. Along one Mississippi highway, motorists themselves used chainsaws to remove trees blocking the road.

RESOURCES ACTIVATED:

More than 1,600 Mississippi National Guardsmen were activated, and the Alabama Guard planned to send two battalions to Mississippi. FEMA deployed 23 Disaster Medical Assistance Teams from all across the U.S. to staging areas in Alabama, Tennessee, Texas, and Louisiana and is now moving them into impacted areas. Seven Urban Search and Rescue task forces and two Incident Support Teams have been deployed and prepositioned in Shreveport, La., and Jackson, Miss., including teams from Florida, Indiana, Ohio, Maryland, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Three more Urban Search and Rescue teams are in the process of deployment.

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