07:22 PM CDT on Monday, September 19, 2005

Tom Plancet

7:22 P.M. - Mothers who delivered during Katrina have remarkable stories.

7:07 P.M. - BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- About 14,000 applications for loans due to Hurricane Katrina have been filed in Louisiana with the federal Small Business Administration, but thousands more people may be eligible to receive assistance, officials said Monday.

The SBA serves as a kind of disaster bank for the federal government and is providing low-interest federal loans to businesses, homeowners and renters who were harmed by the hurricane.

6:55 P.M. - (AP) --The officials death toll from Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana rose by 90 to 736, a spokesman for the state Department of Health and Hospitals said.

Asked to explain the sudden increase, spokesman Bob Johannessen said, "Folks are collecting bodies."

The announcement came as New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin said he was suspending the neighborhood-by-neighborhood repopulation of the city and ordering a new round of evacuations because of the threat of a new tropical storm that appeared to be headed toward the Gulf of Mexico.

6:39 P.M. - The state Department of Health and Hospitals says the death toll from Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana has risen by 90 to 736.

6:27 P.M. - HOUSTON (AP) -- First lady Laura Bush served smothered chicken to Hurricane Katrina refugees Monday at the city's convention center shelter, still home to about 300 survivors uprooted by the storm.

Bush also met with religious leaders and volunteers during a three-hour visit to Houston.

"This type of relief never could have happened without all of us," Bush said as she sat in a semicircle of Muslim, Jewish and Christian leaders at the George R. Brown Convention Center. "It will be a long road for us. We have to stay with them every step as they rebuild their lives and it is not going to be easy."

6:15 P.M. - GALVESTON, Texas (AP) --Galveston officials today called for voluntary evacuation of the island city as Tropical Storm Rita threatens to become a hurricane.

Rough projections indicate Rita could be in the northwest Gulf of Mexico near Mexico or Texas by the weekend.

Governor Rick Perry has recalled the Texas National Guard and other Hurricane Katrina emergency personnel and equipment from Louisiana.

6:00 P.M. - Governor Blanco urges all citizens of southern Louisiana to prepare to leave if necessary due to the threat of tropical storm Rita.

5:20 P.M. - WWL-TV Chief Meteorologist Carl Arredondo: Rita likely to become a hurricane overnight.

5:18 P.M. - Walter Maestri, Jefferson Parish Emergency Center: Keeping an eye on Rita, but no recommendations for evacuations just yet.

5:15 P.M. - (AP) -- Under pressure from President Bush and other top federal officials, the mayor suspended the reopening of large portions of the city Monday and instead ordered nearly everyone out because of the risk of a new round of flooding from a tropical storm on the way.

"If we are off, I'd rather err on the side of conservatism to make sure we have everyone out," Mayor Ray Nagin said.

The announcement came after repeated warnings from top federal officials - and the president himself - that New Orleans was not safe enough to reopen. Among other things, federal officials warned that Tropical Storm Rita could breach the city's temporarily patched-up levees and swamp the city all over again.

4:52 P.M. - WHITE PINE, TN (AP): Manufacturers are gearing up to produce cities of mobile homes for Hurricane Katrina victims.

But more than one week after the federal government received their proposals to address the housing emergency -- the companies are still waiting for a response.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency set a September 9 deadline for mobile home makers to submit bids.

FEMA spokesman Butch Kinerney says there's been a delay because the agency's parent, the Department of Homeland Security, has yet to approve a housing plan.

Manufacturers are expected to get responses to the bids early this week.

Bidders still waiting for a response included the largest manufacturer of mobile homes, Clayton Homes, and Fleetwood Enterprises.

Clayton Homes has operations in Waco, Texas, area. Thousands of Katrina refugees from Louisiana are still being housed in Texas.

4:45 P.M. - ASI Credit Union: To all members: since the hurricane, our staff has been working around the clock to restore full operation to our branches. Several of our branches were minimally affected by the hurricane and are now open. They are: Slidell, Mandeville Causeway, Westwego, Harahan, Covington, Ville Platte, and Thibodaux. Like many other businesses, we suffered losses to property and assets. All consumer loan payments have been deferred for one month to give members time to get back on their feet. Members with SBA and commercial loans are asked to call ASI's business lending department to work out deferred payment loans. Our website, www.asifcu.org is operational and our 24-hour, automated phone line, (504) 733-7336, is up and running. For account inquiries or to wire funds, please call 1-800-749-6193, (504) 733-7274 or (225) 296-0366.

4:38 P.M. - WWL-TV: Marrero: West Jefferson Medical Center is open and fully operational for inpatient medical and surgical treatment. The hospital continued operations, including surgery and critical care, during and since the storm. West Jefferson, located on the West Bank, now has comprehensive inpatient care including dialysis as well as outpatient services available to the community such as the Emergency Department and Ambulance and Air Care; Hyperbaric Medicine; Home Health; Hospice; Diabetes teaching and Wound Care; Radiation Oncology in the Cancer Center, and diagnostic imaging as well as cardiology, nuclear medicine and ultrasound.

Outpatient Rehabilitation at West Jefferson Medical Center is scheduling patient appointments for speech therapy, physical therapy and occupational therapy to resume on Wednesday, September 21.

The Physicians Center, the largest Medical Office building in all of New Orleans is open. Most medical practices in this building are now seeing patients. For information on physicians' practices which are open, contact your doctor's clinic directly or the Medical Staff Office at West Jefferson Medical Center at (504) 349-1119 weekdays. In addition, the West Jefferson Surgery Center in the Physicians Center is open.

CPR training for health professionals and business and industry has also resumed at West Jefferson Medical Center. Call 349-1552 for details.

4:16 P.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): Three weeks after Hurricane Katrina ravaged southeastern Louisiana, Gov. Kathleen Blanco hasn't formally required any state agencies to limit spending and focus on essential needs only, including the rebuilding and recovery.

The governor told lawmakers in a special meeting last week that she was issuing an executive order to rein in unnecessary spending, but by Monday the order still was being written and agencies were left to determine whether they wanted to cut back on travel, equipment purchases and other items to respond to Katrina.

"They've been working on it. It's not ready right now," Blanco spokeswoman Denise Bottcher said.

The governor's Division of Administration said the order likely would be out Tuesday. Click here.

4:01 P.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): The employment agency didn't open until 8 a.m., but Noel Tabb, a Hurricane Katrina evacuee from New Orleans, arrived at least 20 minutes early and sat anxiously on the edge of a shaded bench.

Tabb jumped to his feet the moment the doors opened on a $62 million program Louisiana launched today to temporarily hire up to 10-thousand evacuees to help in the recovery effort.

At nine dollars an hour, the emergency work is not as lucrative as the jobs many New Orleanians held before Katrina wiped out their employers.

But Tabb, a truck driver since 1968, said he needs to be practical now that his home has been flooded and he and his wife are renting an apartment in Baton Rouge.

Economists and local officials said the federally funded program -- as well as the hiring campaigns by local businesses and outside contractors -- will help get many displaced families, both financially and emotionally. But they said the program intended to help up to 10,000 people over 12 weeks, will need to be expanded to prevent a further exodus of evacuees from the state.

3:44 P.M. - (AP): The mayor of New Orleans says he's putting a stop to all returns of residents to the city. Mayor Ray Nagin says it's partly because of Tropical Storm Rita, which is taking aim on the Gulf region.

He says the city's pumping facilities aren't at full capacity -- and that if there's anything above a three-foot storm surge, there will be significant flooding.

Nagin spoke hours after residents of the Algiers neighborhood, across the river from the French Quarter, began to return. Under plans announced last week, two other neighborhoods were supposed to be repopulated later this week.

The return of residents today had prompted federal officials, including President Bush, to voice concerns that the city isn't yet ready to receive them.

3:05 P.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): First came the rising floodwaters, and the pregnant woman started praying.

Please, she said to herself, please don't let me give birth to my twins in this hot, dark attic surrounded by water. Finally, using a crowbar and hammer, friends pried open the roof and she made her way out by a leaky boat. Then came her dramatic delivery.

After a few days in the Superdome, an ambulance rushed the woman out of the chaos toward a waiting helicopter. But before she arrived, Dwight and Dwayne entered this world -- nine pounds in all -- one month early. "It was a miracle," their mother, Antoinette Hickerson, says with a still-dazed smile. Click here.

2:58 P.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): Two Democrats who might seek the White House again in 2008 criticized President Bush for his response to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts and former Senator John Edwards spoke separately today on the government's handling of the catastrophe and on the broader issue of poverty in the United States.

In prepared remarks to be delivered at Brown University, the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee said the government's response to the disaster revealed a "broader pattern of incompetence and negligence" in the Bush administration.

Edwards, the 2004 vice presidential candidate, said the hurricane was a sober reminder that widespread poverty exists throughout the nation.

He said it will persist if the poor are concentrated in specific neighborhoods far from jobs.

2:45 P.M. - (AP): Religious disaster relief groups hope their prompt aid to Hurricane Katrina survivors will build new momentum for President Bush's faith-based initiative.

Southern Baptist and Salvation Army officials have testified before a Senate subcommittee on behalf of legislation that would offer tax breaks and other incentives for charitable donations.

Bishop T.D. Jakes, who preached at the Washington National Cathedral service for hurricane victims, has urged President Bush to channel more money directly to religious relief efforts.

The Reverend Rick Warren, author of "The Purpose Driven Life," says, "long after the Red Cross pulls out and FEMA pulls out, the churches are still going to be there."

But critics say faith-based groups that receive federal funding should forfeit their right to hire only fellow believers.

2:29 P.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): Louisiana lawmakers are counting on the devastation of Hurricane Katrina to persuade Congress and the Bush administration that it's time to earmark a large share of offshore oil and gas revenues to rebuild the state's vanishing wetlands and barrier islands.

After battling unsuccessfully for years to snare a share of offshore federal oil and gas money, the Louisiana delegation is pushing legislation that would dedicate 25% to 50% of those revenues to a coastal restoration plan.

U.S. Senator David Vitter says Katrina made the point much more clearly that Louisiana needs a stable revenue source to address coastal erosion.

Scientists estimate that the storm surge in a hurricane is reduced by one to three feet for every two miles of coastal wetlands. And since the 1930s, Louisiana has lost 1.2 million acres of wetlands and stands to lose an estimated 328,000 additional acres by 2050 unless something is done to halt the slide.

2:15 P.M. - (AP): New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin may be having second thoughts.

His spokeswoman says Nagin is now rethinking the timetable for bringing people back to the city. She says that's because of "external factors," such as a tropical storm that's headed toward the Gulf of Mexico.

Earlier, Nagin bristled at what he suggested was federal interference. He said the federal official in charge of the recovery effort, Coast Guard Vice Admiral Thad Allen, was acting like "the newly crowned federal mayor of New Orleans."

Allen, and then President Bush, voiced concerns about Nagin's decision to allow people back into New Orleans one neighborhood at a time, starting today. They both suggested that New Orleans might still be unsafe, and that it couldn't yet support a large-scale return of residents.

Nagin has scheduled a news conference at mid-afternoon.

Meanwhile, residents who've been returning to the Algiers neighborhood -- across the river from the French Quarter -- have been assessing the relatively moderate damage to their homes.

1:37 P.M. - Toye Taylor, Washington Parish President: We need help from the American Red Cross. We're not getting through to them, either by phone or by location. There's no centers for people to go to get assistance. I haven't been able to reach anybody in authority to discuss the matter.

Taylor: We have a new curfew in affect. It's from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., and the burn ban is still in effect.

1:35 P.M. - WWL-TV: Businesses that want to register to return to the city can visit the Business Registration offices at 601 Loyola Avenue in New Orleans, or call 504-658-2050.

1:27 P.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): Three weeks after Hurricane Katrina tore into the Gulf Coast and with Tropical Storm Rita threatening the Gulf of Mexico, more than half of the region's offshore oil production remained cut off from market Monday, a federal agency said.

Following a survey of 54 energy companies, the Minerals Management Service reported 83 of the 819 staffed production platforms in the Gulf were evacuated, compared with 84 on Friday.

Monday's shut-ins blocked 55.9%, or 837,648 barrels of oil, of the region's normal daily production of 1.5 million barrels. Also, 3.4 billion cubic feet of natural gas, or 33.8% of the Gulf's normal daily production of 10 billion cubic feet, were kept from market, the MMS said.

The agency said it was impossible to tell from its survey, which was not taken over the weekend, to determine how many platforms had been re-evacuated because of Rita's threat. Click here.

1:25 P.M. - DENVER (AP): Colorado Governor Bill Owens is defending President Bush's handling of Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath, saying Bush had no power to send federal troops in to Louisiana without a request from that state's Democratic governor, Kathleen Blanco.

Owens told listeners on his monthly radio program that the White House warned officials in New Orleans to evacuate -- but state officials waited more than 24 hours, until it was too late.

He also criticized New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin.

Owens says Louisiana has long been plagued with corruption, and that the state's emergency management system was no exception.

1:22 P.M. - CLECO spokesperson: 85% of customers in St. Tammany and Washington Parishes.

1:20 P.M. - Dan Packer, President of Entergy: With the exception of Algiers, we’ll be taking a building by building approach to return power.

1:19 P.M. - Packer: Our advice is to get a licensed electrician to take a look at your home before power is restored to make sure your home is safe.

1:17 P.M. Packer: Our intent is to have all five of the CBD and French Quarter grids up by Friday. The three we have up right now are in the CBD.

1:14 P.M. - WWL-TV: St. Michael the Archangel HS begins registration for displaced students today, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., at 17521 Monitor Avenue in Baton Rouge. The phone number is 1-225-242-0220.

1:12 P.M. - WWL-TV: St. Matthew the Apostle is also accepting displaced students. Call 504-737-4604 to enroll. The school is scheduled to open October 3.

12:47 P.M. - HOUSTON (AP): First Lady Laura Bush today visits Houston to get an update on how Hurricane Katrina refugees are doing. It's been three weeks since Katrina came ashore -- battering parts of the Gulf coast and sending tens of thousands of evacuees to Texas.

Emergency officials estimate about 16,000 Katrina refugees are still in shelters in Texas. The Associated Press reports the hurricane-related death toll in Louisiana tops 600.

12:41 P.M. - City Councilwoman Jackie Clarkson opened the new offices for City Council District D at the historic Algiers Courthouse, 225 Morgan Street. Clarkson said Algiers was up to the challenge of being the first city to open within the Greater New Orleans area.

Clarkson: Do not call 911 if you need emergency assistance because the number is down. Please call 552-4830 if you have an emergency.

12:34 P.M. - Greg Riggio, Taste Buds, Inc.: If we lose the mom and pop businesses, we’ll be just another city.

12:31 P.M. - WWL-TV's Juan Kincaid: One-third of the state’s restaurants are in the Metro-area, accounting for $2.1 billion annual income.

12:30 P.M. - (AP): A spokeswoman for New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, says the mayor is reassessing the timelines for bringing residents back into the city in part because of "external factors, such as the tropical storm in the gulf."

Sally Foreman declined to comment further about whether that meant the city would call off the plans to reopen the Uptown area and the French Quarter.

President Bush and the federal hurricane response chief Thad Allen say they are worried about the timing of repopulating New Orleans.

Allen says it could be days or even weeks before New Orleans is considered safe. Allen said he agrees with what he calls the mayor's "vision." The issue is timing and safety as city services slowly return.

A hospital expert who has been evaluating medical facilities in the city says the health care system "is gone -- it no longer exists."

12:28 P.M. - WWL-TV: CARVILLE: An all volunteer group from Jacobs Engineering waits to board a CH-47 Chinook helicopter bound for New Orleans. The team, made up of engineers from all across the country, has been conducting assessments of the facilities at Jackson Barracks and assisting in planning budgets and repair and replacement costs to be presented to Congress. Jackson Barracks, the Louisiana National Guard headquarters, got over 10 feet of water immediately after the storm and during the ensuing couple of days.

According to Frank Mastel, from Arlington, Va., “It’s too early to tell, but the damage estimate is substantial.” The follow-on design of the historical military post must be up to date, but historical precedence will apply to some buildings. Mastel also says they are ahead of schedule in Louisiana, having already finished in Mississippi.

12:10 P.M. - (AP): A lot of the residents of the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans aren't yet taking advantage of the opportunity to return.

And some of those who are back home today aren't staying long. Some people who are surveying the damage to their homes are planning to head back to Texas, where they were relocated after Hurricane Katrina.

One man who remained in his home for a couple of days after the storm hit returned this morning. He said the house isn't badly damaged. He says the water is drinkable, and that there's power. The air conditioning is up and running.

Three gas stations in the neighborhood are open, along with two drug stores. But no grocery stores are open yet. The manager of a Winn-Dixie says he'll open on Thursday.

11:35 A.M. - (AP): Mayor Ray Nagin asks if the Coast Guard official in charge of the federal hurricane recovery effort is now "the new crowned federal mayor of New Orleans."

Nagin is responding to Thad Allen's repeated public comments questioning if the city is ready for people to return. Residents started trickling back in this morning under Nagin's phased return.

Allen has been warning about the lack of safe drinking water, shaky city services and threat of another storm.

Nagin tells Fox News that residents "deserve the opportunity to see what they have left and what they can salvage." He says if Allen is suggesting he's "pushing a little hard," the admiral is right.

An Army Corps of Engineers commander in charge of draining the city says depending on Tropical Storm Rita's path and strength, people may have to evacuate again.

A man who lives in a neighborhood opened to residents today says he'll probably look for a construction job because, "That's about the only thing around."

11:28 A.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): Residents whose private drinking water well systems may have been contaminated by Hurricane Katrina and the storm's floodwaters can get free testing of those wells to determine if they have dangerous levels of bacteria.

The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Louisiana Rural Water Association are offering the free testing. If a water well was flooded, the homeowner must disinfect the well with a chlorine bleach solution, flush it, collect water samples and drop them off for the lab analysis.

The sampling supplies and instructions on how to properly disinfect the well can be picked up at parish health units. For further details, call the health units:

--St. Tammany Parish Health Unit at 985-893-6296.

--Livingston Parish Health Unit at 225-686-7017.

--Washington Parish Health Unit at 985-839-5646.

--Tangipahoa Parish Health Unit at 985-543-4175.

11:19 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): The congressman in charge of investigating the response to Hurricane Katrina is back from taking a firsthand look at the damage.

Northern Virginia Republican Tom Davis was one of more than a dozen lawmakers to take the trip to New Orleans and Mississippi. He tells W-M-A-L Radio that after flying over the scene, they have a better understanding of how the destruction occurred.

Davis says except for certain areas, New Orleans is mostly without electricity, and debris remains all over. But he estimates about three-quarters of the city is no longer under water.

As for the damage, Davis figures about 80% of the homes are a loss in New Orleans. And when you travel down the coast, it's a similar story.

He says the congressional investigation will focus on learning from the mistakes made, to ensure there's not a repeat.

11:02 A.M. - HAHNVILLE (AP): Two Dow Chemical Co. facilities in St. Charles Parish that suffered minor damages from Hurricane Katrina were resuming operations Monday.

The company said transportation disruptions and other logistical problems will continue to restrict access to materials and delivery at the facilities in Hahnville and Norco -- owned by Union Carbide Corp., a subsidiary of Dow.

After Katrina, Dow started a hotline with information for its employees and is providing temporary housing, interest-free loans and other assistance. The company's largest site in Plaquemine returned to normal operations shortly after the storm.

10:48 A.M. - (AP): The man in charge of removing flood waters from New Orleans and surveying and repairing levees is urging caution concerning repopulating the city.

Colonel Duane Gapinski, commander of Task Force Unwatering, says residents may be placing themselves at risk by entering flooded areas before further emergency levee repairs are made.

The Army Corps of Engineers is assessing about 350 miles of hurricane levee. They are developing a prioritized plan to repair the levees and pumping stations.

The Corps said increased traffic in New Orleans over the weekend delayed travel to work sites.

10:22 A.M. - A memo to St. Bernard residents from Parish President Benny Rousselle: According to FEMA, in a meeting held on Saturday, September 16, the following individual assistance will be available for housing options:

1. Funding to repair housing

2. Rental assistance (example rents)

3. Travel trailers, mobile homes

4. Camps for tent cities (LAST RESORT)

-- Please be sure to have your FEMA registration number.

-- Please be patient as we are all working to provide relief to you and your family.

9:58 A.M. - ATLANTA (AP): More than 9,000 students from states affected by Hurricane Katrina are now enrolled in Georgia schools.

School districts have reported a total of 9,189 evacuee students are enrolled in 146 districts throughout Georgia. Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox's office reports that the number of students has increased by 3,500 students since last Monday.

Cox issued a statement saying local schools have done a "great job of accepting these students and educating them." She says the number of students enrolling appears to be leveling off.

She says she is pleased that the U.S. Department of Education is seeking $2.35 billion from Congress to help states that have accepted evacuee students.

9:43 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): President Bush on Monday questioned the plan to allow residents to return to New Orleans, saying there are too many concerns about additional flooding and safety in the city.

"The city needs to re-emerge," the president said after a meeting of his Homeland Security Council. "It's a matter of timing."

8:42 A.M. - Archie Manning: I think the teams are pretty evenly matched; the Saints have a little bit more talent than the Giants.

8:39 A.M. - Manning: I thought this was a great idea by the NFL to have a doubleheader on Monday Night Football. This is unprecedented.

8:15 A.M. - (AP): Federal hurricane response chief Thad Allen says he worries about the timing of repopulating New Orleans.

Mayor Ray Nagin is allowing people to return to parts of the city today. But Allen says there are concerns about drinkable water, questionable levees and the possibility of another storm.

Allen tells CBS it could be days or even weeks before New Orleans is considered safe. Allen said he agrees with what he calls the mayor's "vision." The issue is timing and safety as city services slowly return.

A hospital expert who has been evaluating medical facilities in the city says the health care system "is gone -- it no longer exists."

The two men are to meet today to discuss the matter.

8:10 A.M. - Susan Jackson, Army Corps of Engineers: We have engineers that are going to walk the levees with members of the levee board to survey damage and potential problems, and to figure out what we can do to correct those problems.

8:06 A.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): Tulane's football team will play its next home game on October 1 in LSU's Tiger Stadium.

Homecoming plans for that weekend have been postponed. But the game against Southeastern Louisiana will mark a true "coming home" -- the team's first game in southeast Louisiana since the evacuation.

Tulane Athletic Director Rick Dickson says the game will give many Tulane fans now living in the Baton Rouge area a chance to see the Green Wave for the first time this year.

8:04 A.M. - EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ (AP): The New York Giants and New Orleans Saints play tonight in a game that could provide a huge boost to the winner. But it also could boost an unprecedented nationwide disaster relief effort that serves as a backdrop to the game.

The Giants haven't opened with two straight wins since 2000. That year, they reached the Super Bowl. But they haven't won consecutive games since last October.

The Saints are coming off an emotional win at Carolina in their opener after being left homeless by Hurricane Katrina.

Tonight's game at Giants Stadium was to be the Saints' home opener on September 18th. But damage to the Louisiana Superdome by Hurricane Katrina three weeks ago caused the NFL to move it to Giants Stadium.

The league is using a rare Monday night double header to broadcast a telethon to raise money for victims of the disaster. Washington plays at Dallas an hour and a half after the New York-New Orleans kickoff.

8:01 A.M. - Dr. Brobson Lutz, Orleans Parish Medical Society: Mold growing in some of these homes and high rise office buildings is not toxic. Just wipe it off with bleach.

7:59 A.M. - Lutz: There is no need for any special immunization shots before coming back to town.

7:57 A.M. - Lutz: I’ve been in public health a long time, and I’m trying to figure out what the exact danger is in taking a shower or drinking the water in town. But I’m recommending people err on the side of caution.

7:55 A.M. - Lutz: I think the EPA needs to take a basic course on water sampling.

7:52 A.M. - OKLAHOMA CITY (AP): Oklahoma City officials are drafting a proposed lease agreement that will bring the NBA's New Orleans Hornets to the Ford Center to play at least part of their 41-game home schedule.

An announcement is scheduled as early as today on plans to temporarily relocate the Hornets to Oklahoma City after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. The storm has made it unfeasible for the team to play its season, which starts in November, in its hometown.

It is still not known how many games, if any, might be played in New Orleans.

The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune reported Sunday the team would establish most of their base operations in Oklahoma City, but would also keep a smaller office in either New Orleans or Baton Rouge.

Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett said the number of games to be played in Louisiana will be decided by the NBA and Louisiana authorities. Cornett says a city council meeting will be scheduled Wednesday morning to review the proposed contract.

7:49 A.M. - WILMINGTON, NC (AP): A forensic anthropologist from North Carolina will be one on the team in New Orleans that is recovering and identifying people who died in Hurricane Katrina.

Midori Albert, an associate anthropology professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, was called to Louisiana by a company hired to recover bodies. She will work on a team of about 125 people for the next 11 days.

"It's a way to contribute a service no one wants to think about because it's unpleasant," Albert said in a telephone interview. "The dead people are just as important as the living people."

7:44 A.M. - NEW IBERIA (AP): The city of New Iberia has been blocked from holding an Oct. 15 referendum on the question of whether the city should re-establish its own police department and end patrols by the Iberia Parish sheriff.

State District Judge Gerard Wattingny issued a temporary restraining order Friday on a suit filed by New Iberia resident Henry T. Porter. Porter contends the referendum is nothing more than an illegal straw poll of voters.

The city council approved the referendum on July 12.

The council voted in 2004 to slash the 84-member police department to 11 employees and sign a 10-year contract with the sheriff as a money-saving move. But a recent study indicted the city is paying nearly $50,000 more on an annual basis for law enforcement under the contract.

7:35 A.M. - Michelle Duffourc, Airport spokesperson: The airport is losing $200,000 a day in fees, and it will take $55 million to repair any damages caused by the storm.

7:34 A.M. - Dufforc: Amazingly we had only one window panel--that I'm aware of--that was broken.

7:30 A.M. - Dufforc: Continental will be back in service today, with Southwest returning tomorrow and American Airlines coming back on Wednesday.

7:10 A.M. - WEST MONROE (AP): A 39-year-old Mississippi hurricane refugee staying in West Monroe has been arrested by FBI agents and accused of making bomb threats to relief agencies and the military.

Billy Wayne Livingston, who lost his home in Biloxi, was booked yesterday with threatening the American Red Cross, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi.

Livingston remains in jail today pending an appearance before a federal magistrate.

7:05 A.M. - HOUSTON (AP): Texas officials expect Hurricane Katrina evacuees to be completely out of Houston's mega-shelters by the end of the week.

About 1,800 evacuees were still living at Reliant Arena and Houston's downtown convention center yesterday.

Today, FEMA is expected to begin moving some disaster recovery services out of the shelters. That includes housing placement.

Just two weeks ago, Houston's shelters housed more than 27,000 evacuees.

Meanwhile, Houston residents are still showing their generosity toward the victims.

At yesterday's Houston Texans game, about 100 Texans ticket-holders donated their seats to refugees.

6:55 A.M. - MESA, AZ (AP): Some 160 four-legged Hurricane Katrina evacuees found a new home in Arizona with the help of the Arizona Humane Society and the Arizona Air National Guard.

Yesterday, 160 dogs left behind when Hurricane Katrina hit arrived in Phoenix. The dogs were flown into Sky Harbor Airport from Louisiana.

An Arizona Humane Society spokeswoman said they'll be taken to a shelter to undergo a thorough check-in process.

The pets will be scanned for identification microchips and be given one if they don't already; Vaccinations will be administered and each will be fitted with a new collar; and each pet will be photographed and its picture posted on the Web site PetFinder.com.

The society's volunteers will take care of the dogs and wait for family members to claim them for four weeks. After that, the dogs ill be placed for adoption.

6:45 A.M. - GULFPORT, MS (AP): Food Network celebrity chef Cat Cora founded Chefs for Humanity only months ago to cook up some comfort for those trapped in crisis. Ironically, the idea's first test is in her home state of Mississippi.

Cora says soon after Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast, her group headed to Texas, thinking they could help feed evacuees. But she found they weren't needed.

The Jackson, Mississippi native says she realized quickly that her home state needed the assistance that her group had to offer.

She started working in the kitchen of Bayou View Elementary School in Gulfport.

Mississippi had vast destruction and human suffering, but in the first weeks got less attention than the flooded city of New Orleans.

With the help of volunteers and culinary students, Chefs for Humanity is now serving some 2,000 meals a day, about 800 for lunch and 1,200 for dinner -- jambalaya, fajitas, Asian stir fry and more.

Many other independent groups are on the Mississippi coast to help feed the homeless and the army of recovery workers.

6:40 A.M. - LOS ANGELES (AP): Katrina laced the glitz and glamour of last night's Emmys.

Most participants recognized the tragedy subtly, wearing magnolias on their lapels. The magnolia is the state flower of Louisiana and Mississippi. But there was high profile recognition, as well.

Stars urged viewers to donate money for disaster relief.

Patricia Arquette said she's lost sleep thinking about the poverty spotlighted by Katrina. In Arquette's words, "This is like wartime." Arquette won the award for best actress in a drama series for "Medium."

As Emmy host, Ellen DeGeneres cracked jokes while her hometown of New Orleans struggles to recover from Katrina. DeGeneres said, "It's times like this that we really need laughter."

6:35 A.M. - KNOXVILLE, TN (AP): Tennessee officials say some 600 college students displaced by Hurricane Katrina are enrolled in state institutions.

The University of Memphis, which served as the state's clearinghouse for displaced students, has the most with 308.

Second is the University of Tennessee, where more than 100 students have ended up finding higher ground.

Others receiving students are Tennessee State, Middle Tennessee State, UT Chattanooga, UT Martin, Tennessee Tech, Austin Peay, East Tennessee State and several community colleges.

Shortly after the hurricane hit, Governor Phil Bredesen announced state schools would accept transfer students from colleges and universities closed by the disaster.

Those who already paid tuition at their former schools wouldn't have to pay tuition at their new Tennessee school.

6:07 A.M. - (AP): Residents of the New Orleans neighborhood of Algiers are being permitted to come home today. It's the first neighborhood re-opened by city officials since Hurricane Katrina devastated the city.

Some residents started to trickle back over the weekend and many of them are questioning the decision allowing them to return. Joseph Batiste says it's clear Algiers is not ready to handle the thousands of people who are expected to return.

Most stores are closed. No gas stations are open. Some homes and businesses have power but others do not and the water is not safe to drink.

Janice King says conditions may be primitive but it's good to be home and she'll take it "one day at a time, one hour at a time."

5:59 A.M. - (AP): Troops going house-to-house in New Orleans are finding out just how busy looters were after Hurricane Katrina.

They've found automatic teller machines that had been emptied of cash and bags of ammunition packaged in 500-round bundles.

A church-run assisted living home was full of bicycles, stereos and clothing.

Inside another home, the soldiers found stacks of car parts and a video game system with a pawn shop ticket still attached. A man returning to the home told soldiers someone else must have broken in and stashed the loot after he evacuated.

They took the man's name and address, but did not arrest him. For now, all the found property's being stored in a warehouse. The district attorney says he intends to prosecute looters but it's just not a high priority right now.

5:50 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): Radio was there for thousands of Hurricane Katrina survivors who had no other means of communication during the crisis.

Residents' homes were under water and without electricity. Television news and the Internet were inaccessible. It was battery-powered radio that carried the information to people, just as it has done for decades.

In many cases, local updates came from reporters quickly sent in from outside the area and from disc jockeys pressed into service as news anchors. Many stations today do not employ reporters, so the scramble was on once the hurricane hit.

In New Orleans, WWL AM had a local news staff and managed to stay on the air with backup generators. The news-talk station took dozens of calls each day from stranded people who asked how to find missing loved ones and where to go for shelter and food.

In Gulfport and Biloxi, Mississippi, radio stations aired Katrina coverage with the help of a simulcast from a local television station and backup generators.

12:50 A.M. - BAKER (AP): Along a quarter-mile stretch of Groom Road, bulldozers rumbled and plastic pipe formed the skeletal beginnings of what Louisiana officials hope will be the first of many communities for homeless victims of Hurricane Katrina.

But the construction under way here Sunday represents only a small step in fullfilling state officials' grand plan to provide homes -- temporary but longterm -- for those displaced by Katrina.

And nobody at the state Office of Emergency Preparedness, just south of here in Baton Rouge, is willing to say that evacuation shelters holding nearly 100,000 people who fled the storm can be emptied into longer term housing by mid-October, a goal set last week by President Bush.

Mark Smith, spokesman for the state Office Emergency Preparedness, noted that in addition to those in shelters in Louisiana and other states, there are likely hundreds of thousands more displaced by the storm, staying with friends or relatives and in need of homes.

-------

Click here for yesterday's blog