11:15 PM CDT on Friday, September 9, 2005

Tom Planchet

10:13 P.M. (AP): State health officials said Friday they will begin a spraying program to curb the hatching and spread of mosquitos and flies in the stagnant flood waters left behind in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

The program's main goal is to prevent the spread of mosquito-borne illnesses, which include West Nile virus. Aerial spraying is set to begin Sunday in New Orleans and surrounding areas and will take place in the last two hours of daylight, state health officials said.

The U.S. Air Force will conduct the aerial application of the pesticide Naled to help mosquito control activities normally conducted by parishes and cities. Naled is routinely used by mosquito control districts in Louisiana.

8:49 P.M. (AP): An impish Chris Rock couldn't resist scaring producers during a benefit concert aired across all major broadcast networks and several cable channels. Looking into the camera, Rock said, "George Bush hates midgets."

Rock was referring to an incident during an NBC fundraising concert last weekend in which rapper Kanye West veered off script to lambast Bush's response to the devestation in New Orleans

"We've all heard the question," Rock said on Friday. "Why didn't these people just leave when they had the chance? But now we realize that not everybody can just jump into their SUVs and drive to a nice hotel. These people depend on public transportation and these people can't afford a nice hotel, because some of them work there. Now it's your chance to help them."

Neil Young, Randy Newman, Mariah Carey and Dr. John were among other performers.

8:44 P.M. (AP): FEMA issued 4,200 cards to families at the Astrodome on Friday, and officials said they were confident they have covered everyone still staying at the shelter. Evacuees who were staying outside the main shelter and expected to get cards on Saturday or Sunday must now apply for assistance online at FEMA.gov or by calling 1-800-621-3362.

8:31 P.M. (AP): A $30.9 million fast-track contract was signed Friday to rebuild the Interstate 10 "Twin Span" bridge over Lake Pontchartrain that suffered major damage during Hurricane Katrina.

The emergency project, awarded to New Orleans-based Boh Bros. Construction Co., will safely put traffic back on the bridge connecting New Orleans and Slidell within 45 days, officials said. Work was set to begin Monday.

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The project will make one of the bridge spans passable for two-lane traffic, and the other span for one-lane traffic. Several pre-cast concrete panels were shifted, damaged or destroyed by the hurricane, which slammed into the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29.

The state also announced that it will begin fielding bids early next year on a new twin-span bridge to replace the existing one, Bradberry said. The new bridge will be a six-lane structure built at a higher elevation.

While exact costs and finance arrangements were not available Friday, Bradberry said he expects the project to be completed in about three years.

The construction costs should be eligible for reimbursement for emergency relief funds allocated to the Federal Highway Administration upon passage of a special funding package from Congress, a state news release said.

8:19 P.M. - (AP): U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt said Friday that Arkansas relief efforts had been "unique in their efficiency."

Leavitt made the comment during a visit with Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, as part of a two-day trip by Leavitt to states that took in large numbers of refugees.

"I've been impressed with the way Arkansas has created small communities, and the interface between the faith community and people," Leavitt said. "I really like that every one of the church camps has a mayor and police chief. Those are ways to bring a sense of community."

Arkansas has an estimated 5,000 refugees sheltering at 26 church camps throughout the state, and an estimated total of 50,000 in shelters, hotels and private homes, according to Huckabee.

7:17 P.M. - (AP): The number of unemployment applications, already a record in Louisiana, was up to more than 165,000 Friday -- 115,000 within the state, and at least 50,000 more by refugees of Hurricane Katrina who were in other states.

The state Department of Labor was working with its counterparts in Texas and other states, Secretary John Warner Smith said Friday.

People can apply for unemployment insurance and disaster relief at any one-stop job center, online at http://www.laworks.net  or by calling toll-free numbers 1-866-783-5567 or 1-800-818-7811. Injured workers who were getting workers' compensation before the hurricane should call 1-866-783-5567, 1-800-201-2494 or 1-800-201-3457 to update contact information.

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At least 600 out-of-state officers and probably 1,000 are helping Louisiana State Police, and the department has asked others to wait until later, Trooper Johnnie Brown said Friday.

"It's not just, 'Do you want to come to Louisiana and help out?'" he said -- help will be needed for some time, and it must be coordinated.

Once they arrive, they are sworn in and Louisiana State Police let them know what they'll be doing and where they'll be staying.

They do all kinds of police work, often working together with troopers who know the area.

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Thirty-seven post offices reopened Friday in six parishes hit by Hurricane Katrina, U.S. Postal Service spokesman Dave Lewin said.

The reopened post offices are in St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. John, Tangipahoa and Washington parishes, he said.

He urged people who expect to be out of their homes for some time to file change of address forms at post offices, on the Web, or by calling 1-800-ASKUSPS.

The postal service gave the Astrodome its own Zip code, 77230, for mail sent to the storm refugees there.

6:36 P.M. - (AP): Hurricane Katrina victims who had been unable to apply for emergency food stamps will get a second chance to do so starting Saturday, officials said.

More than $52 million in disaster food stamps already has been distributed in Louisiana, with more than 120,000 people applying for the program as of Friday, said Ann S. Williamson, secretary of the state Department of Social Services.

The stamps, which average $370 a month, will be available for a second week starting Saturday for residents of 14 parishes affected by the Aug. 29 storm.

6:34 P.M. - (AP): With power substations in St. Bernard Parish still underwater, only 1 percent of the homes and businesses there have electricity, Louisiana Public Service Commission member Jimmy Fields said Friday.

More than 389,000 homes and businesses in the state remained without power Friday -- 339,237 Entergy customers, and about 50,000 Cleco customers, according to the companies' Web sites.

But about two-thirds of the 1.2 million customers left without power at the height of the storm had it back.

In New Orleans, Fields said, 89 percent of the customers were without power; it was nearly 70 percent in St. Tammany and Washington parishes, 55 percent in Jefferson Parish, and 32 percent in Plaquemines. Tangipahoa Parish was the only other one in more than single digits, at 19 percent; six parishes had at least 90 percent of the power back, and it was completely restored in seven parishes.

Fields wouldn't guess when all of New Orleans might have its lights back on. "I don't think anybody really knows," he said.

"They got Poydras lit, they got the BellSouth operations center up. ... Hopefully, it provides encouragement to people who are out of New Orleans but looking back and seeing what's been restored."

Cellular phone companies had 40 percent or more of their towers working in Jefferson and Orleans parishes, Fields said.

"Everyone with a 504 number should be able to receive voice mails and get calls in and out," he said.

But there were so many calls being made that many couldn't go through, he said.

6:02 P.M. - Mark Lambert of the Department of Transportation and Development says that one side of the twin spans should be back up and running for two-way traffic within 45 days. A contract has been awarded for the temporary fix. A longer term fix will require additional work. By Nov. 1, two-way on one span, by Jan. 1, two-way traffic on one span and one way traffic on the other span. Then bids will come out for entirely new structure with six lanes and it will be raised higher to make it less succeptible to storm damage.

5:58 P.M. KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Al Gore helped airlift some 270 Katrina evacuees on two private charters from New Orleans earlier this week. Gore was acting at the urging of a doctor who saved the life of the former vice president's son. Doctor David Kline operated on Gore's son, Albert, after a life-threatening auto accident in 1989. He was trying to get in touch with Gore. Kline was stranded with patients at Charity Hospital in New Orleans. Gore criticized the Bush administration's slow response to Katrina in a speech in San Francisco today, but refused to be interviewed about the mercy missions he financed and flew. An account of the flights was posted this week on a Democratic Party Web page.

5:22 P.M. WASHINGTON (AP) -- The nation's relief agency is halting its program to distribute debit cards worth up to two-thousand dollars to Hurricane Katrina victims. The Federal Emergency Management Agency will scrap the program once officials finish distributing cards this weekend at shelters in Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Those three cities have been the main relocation sites for thousands of evacuees from Louisiana. No debit cards will be issued to victims in other states. Hurricane victims at other locations will have to apply for expedited aid through the agency's traditional route. FEMA spokeswoman Natalie Rule says the agency tried it as an innovative way to get aid to refugees in Texas. FEMA decided it would be more expeditious with direct deposits -- due to the large staffing operation that would be required to replicate the Texas operation elsewhere.

5:00 P.M. - Health officials: It is likely that e-coli exists in the floodwaters in Orleans.

4:53 P.M. - Plaquemines Parish President Benny Rousselle says the mandatory evacuation order for the parish from the Jefferson Parish/ Plaquemines line to the refinery will be lifted.

He said those who do return, can stay, but that there is no power and limited access to groceries.

Rousselle said a strict curfew will be in effect from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.

He said the rest of the parish are not allowed back and may not be for months.

3:02 P.M. - (AP) -- The famed aquarium in New Orleans is sending surviving creatures to facilities in Dallas, Galveston and Monterey, California.

The Audubon Aquarium of the Americas wasn't badly damaged by Hurricane Katrina.

But officials say the loss of electricity and other storm impact on the complex knocked out the life-support systems. Most of its six-thousand animals died. But aquarium staff managed to save sea otters, penguins and other birds, some fish and a 250-pound green sea turtle named "Midas."

Macaws, raptors and two sea lions from the Audubon Zoo arrived yesterday at the Houston Zoo. Eight large tarpon will remain in the Audubon's Gulf of Mexico exhibit.

3:00 P.M. - WWL-TV Reporter Josh McElveen: 187 portable pumps capable of pumping 25,000 gallons per minute are working to get water out of the city. Pumps at 17th Street Canal are now pumping out 21,000 gallons per second, but debris could hinder process.

2:58 P.M. - SHREVEPORT, La. (AP) -- It was an unlikely embrace between two high-profile evangelists at a Shreveport Shelter. Reverend Al Sharpton arrived at the Hirsch Coliseum for a tour of the facility.

Coincidentally, Reverend Franklin Graham, with Samaritan's Purse, arrived at the same time; neither evangelist knew the other was coming.

Sharpton is known for his heated debates over racial issues, and is a civil rights activist; while Graham aligns with conservative Christians, and openly supports President Bush. After the hug, Sharpton said he and Graham don't have to agree on everything to get things done. Both toured the shelter and spoke to evacuees about the conditions.

Evacuees said it was encouraging to see the two men come together and put differences aside.

2:55 P.M. - WWL-TV Reporter Dennis Woltering in French Quarter: Flooding in Treme area has gone down about 9 feet.

2:50 P.M. - Woltering: Two rescue dogs have died, believed to be from the water in New Orleans.

2:48 P.M. - Woltering: No reports of injuries of humans yet due to floodwaters.

2:33 P.M. -BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- Hurricane Katrina could cost the nation's second-largest fishery more than $1.2 billion, cutting commercial and sport catches about 40 percent over the next 12 months in Louisiana's waters.

Louisiana seafood is still safe. Seafood currently is being taken from unaffected areas of the Gulf. In the areas affected by the storm, oyster beds are closed, and nobody is fishing, said John Roussel, assistant secretary of the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Roussel said the dollar losses include $1.1 billion over the next year and another $150 million in oyster revenues the year after that, because it takes oysters two years to grow to marketable size.

2:09 P.M. - St. Tammany Parish Update as of Friday at 1 p.m.

2:06 P.M. - Congressman Charlie Melancon: Hopefully, we can go back to a time when the Director of FEMA answered only to the President, and do what needs to be done without having to run his ideas by a middleman.

2:05 P.M. - Melancon: It looks like it’s a selective group is receiving the $2,000 voucher from FEMA. Nobody I know has received their check.

2:00 P.M. - Melancon, on Mike Brown’s removal: I think the fall guy has been taken out. FEMA has been neutered by being placed under Homeland Security. It used to be a cabinet level position. If the government would give FEMA the authority to go out and do what needs to be done without having to consult with higher-ups, people would be better off.

1:59 P.M. - Melancon: The people of this country, and especially of this devastated area, are sick and tired of hearing politicians on both sides point fingers at each other. We need to get these people help immediately. In time down the road, we can figure out who was responsible for what.

1:55 P.M. - PHOENIX (AP) -- Four children who became separated from their parents when Hurricane Katrina hit will be reunited with their families in Phoenix today.

The Red Cross has notified Sky Harbor airport that the children will be flown to Phoenix from Houston, where they had been staying in a shelter. The parents are in a shelter at the coliseum in Phoenix.

The children range in age from six to 12.

1:53 P.M. - HOUSTON (AP): Congressman Tom DeLay says people trying to put their lives together following Hurricane Katrina need options.

The House majority leader visited evacuees at Houston's Astrodom complex today.

The Texas Republican is promising a full review of preparation and recovery efforts linked to the storm. He also says a series of bills offering assistance will be introduced in coming weeks. DeLay told reporters that arrangements should be made to provide housing for those who want it in Louisiana so they can assist in efforts to rebuild New Orleans.

About 245,000 people displaced by the storm have sought temporary shelter in Texas.

1:50 P.M. - NEW YORK (AP): A leading risk assessment firm says hurricane Katrina caused at least $125 billion in economic damage and could cost the insurance industry up to $60 billion in claims.

That's significantly higher than the previous record-setting storm, Hurricane Andrew in 1992, which caused nearly $21 billion in insured losses in today's dollars.

Risk Management Solutions, a Newark, California-based firm, says its revised damage figures reflect, in part, the ravages of heavy flooding in New Orleans, which has prompted officials to try to evacuate the city.

Laurie Johnson, an RMS vice president says the flooding, which occurred when levies collapsed and water from rivers and canals flowed into the low-lying city, also makes it harder to project final losses.

She estimates damage to infrastructure such as roads and bridges and the utility system in New Orleans alone at more than $10 billion.

1:40 P.M. - Plaquemines Parish President Benny Rousselle: The parish will be open (from Belle Chasse to the Alliance Refinery) for residents to return this Sunday morning at 6 a.m. Residents will have to show their ID in order to gain entry into the parish.

Sewerage and water systems are up and running again, although electricity is sporadic at this time. Some neighborhoods have it, others do not.

There are no grocery stores open, so people will have to bring their own food and medicine in with them.

1:21 P.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): Michael Brown is no longer leading the federal recovery effort in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff is confirming that Brown, the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is being sent back to Washington. He'll be replaced at the helm of the relief effort by Coast Guard Vice Admiral Thad Allen.

Chertoff says it's because FEMA needs to be ready to handle other storms or additional disasters that may come along. He says Brown has done everything he could to coordinate the federal response.

But the move comes amid intense criticism of Brown and others involved in the federal response to Katrina. And there are now published reports that Brown inflated his credentials in emergency management.

Brown stood alongside Chertoff as the announcement was made, but only Chertoff was taking questions. A reporter tried to ask Brown if this was the first step toward his resignation, but Chertoff rejected that question.

1:13 P.M. - HOUSTON (AP): Doctors at the Houston refugee complex housing thousands of Hurricane Katrina evacuees have contained a viral outbreak.

Authorities say the illness caused diarrhea and vomiting among hundreds of those seeking shelter.

The Harris County Public Health and Emergency Services today reports about 700 people have been treated, with 40 still in isolation to contain the virus.

While the noro-virus was relatively mild, doctors took extra precautions to keep it from running rampant.

The approximately 3,000 refugees remaining in the dome are using public restrooms and showers. Cots are lined in close rows.

The sick were quarantined until they had gone 48 hours without symptoms.

1:11 P.M. - HARTFORD, CT (AP): More soldiers from Connecticut are headed south to help with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.

Forty soldiers from the 1,048th transport company of New London are on their way to Louisiana to help with hurricane relief efforts.

They'll take 20 tractor-trailer trucks they can use to transport supplies around New Orleans.

Another 100 soldiers and airmen from the National Guard's Quick Response Force are leaving this afternoon from Bradley Air National Guard Base. They'll be transported by two KC-135 and two C-130 aircraft that will also take donated water to New Orleans.

The troops will join 100 Connecticut soldiers from two military police companies who are already in New Orleans. A dozen Groton-based maintenance personnel are also there.

That brings to 242 the total number of Connecticut soldiers helping out with hurricane relief efforts.

1:09 P.M. - Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, on the removal of Michael Brown: I appreciate (Brown’s) work, and the tireless efforts of FEMA workers.

1:07 P.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown is being removed from his role in managing the Bush administration's Hurricane Katrina relief efforts and is returning to Washington.

Brown, who has been under fire for the federal government's slow response to the storm that devastated much of the Gulf Coast region, will be replaced by Coast Guard Vice Adm. Thad W. Allen, who was overseeing New Orleans relief and rescue efforts.

Asked if he was being made a scapegoat for a federal relief effort that has drawn widespread and sharp criticism, Brown told The Associated Press after a long pause: "By the press, yes. By the president, No."

1:05 P.M. - MIDLAND, TX (AP): Some World War II planes based in Texas have been used to ferry supplies to Louisiana hurricane victims.

Two planes owned by the Midland-based Commemorative Air Force flew to Slidell Municipal Airport to haul relief items.

The volunteer group is a nonprofit organization that restores and flies vintage military aircraft.

The flights happened because some retired military personnel wanted to help.

CAF spokeswoman Ray Crites (crytes) says the R-4D and the C-47 hauled supplies that were gathered by organizations in conjunction with the Red Cross.

Pilot Joe Nemmer says the cargo included a lot of baby food. The flights, which were done earlier this week, departed from Austin.

The R-4D -- nicknamed "Ready Four Duty" -- is assigned to Lancaster.

The A-26 is called the "Spirit of Waco," where it's based.

1:00 P.M. - GLENDALE, CA (AP):- Aaron Neville says he hasn't been back to New Orleans, but images of flood waters show his native city has turned into a "toxic gumbo."

"I haven't heard from a lot of my friends and don't know if they are alive or dead," Neville told The Associated Press. "When they drain the city there will be a lot of bodies."

The award-winning singer, a member of the Neville Brothers singing group, also said that more than two-dozen of his relatives have been evacuated from the city and are living in various states. Neville, 64, believes much of his home is under water. Also gone are prized valuables, including photos and his four Grammys.

He and his brothers spent five years renovating an old house on Canal Street and turned it into a studio where they recorded the family album "Walkin' in the Shadow of Life" and his upcoming solo release, "Christmas Prayer."

They are donating a portion of their record sales toward the relief effort, which his label, EMI Music Group, has agreed to match.

Neville said New Orleans was a "disaster waiting to happen" and wished the response had been swifter: "The cavalry could have come a little sooner."

Neville has been living in Memphis for the past week and a half and is unsure if he will return to New Orleans. He had been on tour when the hurricane struck.

"I hope one day they will build New Orleans up high enough so this doesn't happen again," he said. "We don't need to be a bowl surrounded by water anymore."

Neville has been on overdrive this week since Hurricane Katrina swept through the Gulf Coast and forced one of New Orleans' most famous musical families to flee.

After appearing on the BET telethon Friday, he'll fly to Nashville and join his three brothers to perform for a charity show, "ReAct Now: Music & Relief," which will air on MTV, VH1 and CMT.

On Sept. 18, he's scheduled to sing the national anthem for the game between the New York Giants and the New Orleans Saints, who have also been displaced by the hurricane.

Neville, a burly man with a silky voice, is best known for the ballads "Tell It Like It Is" and joining Linda Ronstadt on "Don't Know Much."

12:57 P.M. - BATON ROUGE (The Advocate): Among the tens of thousands of people evacuated from southeastern Louisiana because of Hurricane Katrina are some 3,000 registered sex offenders.

The seven parishes with the most damage and displaced people from the hurricane and flooding have 3,080 registered sex offenders and sexual predators, including 1,405 in Orleans Parish, according to the Louisiana State Police sex offender registry.

Florida has a hurricane policy that requires certain registered sex offenders to ride out a storm in jail, but Louisiana has no policy in regard to sex offenders during hurricanes or evacuations. That means those registered in the system could end up in shelters or communities across Louisiana and in other states.

"There's no statute in Louisiana to require them to be reincarcerated," said Capt. Jerry Patrick of the Louisiana State Police.

The sex offender registry is as close to real time as possible, Patrick said. That means that shelters and communities that take in evacuees can check people's names against the state or national sex offender registry. Those officials should use available state and national resources if they have concerns, Patrick said.

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On the Net: State police sex offender and child predator site: h ttp://www.lasocpr.lsp.org/socpr/

12:56 P.M. - DALLAS (AP): Dallas Mayor Laura Miller says the city's not waiting for federal and state help to move Hurricane Katrina victims out of the city's shelters.

She announced today a campaign to raise private dollars to move victims into apartments around Dallas.

Miller says the campaign aims to raise $3 million in private donations to cover the first two months' rent for as many as 800 Katrina households.

She says the campaign already has received $250,000 in donations -- and the Seven-Eleven convenience stores around Dallas have agreed to sell Mardi Gras beads for a dollar each to benefit the fund.

The fund is intended for families not already eligible for public housing assistance.

About 17,000 Hurricane Katrina survivors from Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama were housed at Reunion Arena and the Dallas Convention Center as of yesterday.

12:55 P.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): Hurricane Katrina may cost Louisiana's fisheries and associated businesses $1.1 billion over the next year and another $150 million in oyster revenues the year after that.

John Roussel, assistant secretary of the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, says that includes $539 million just in shrimp and related businesses.

Roussel says the estimates, based on previous hurricane losses and recent retail sales totals, will change as more surveys are made.

With National Guard troops and other people joining the search and rescue teams, scientists in his department were freed to make a preliminary survey of damage to the seafood industry.

12:44 P.M. - PUEBLO, Colo. (AP) -- A Custer County man with a long criminal record is being held without bond -- this time, for allegedly stealing money donated to Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.

Fifty-seven-year-old John Gilbert Herrera is jailed on suspicion of criminal impersonation, and felony theft of an amount between 500 dollars and 15-thousand dollars.

12:42 P.M. - WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown is being removed from his role managing Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, The Associated Press has learned. Brown is being sent back to Washington from Baton Rouge, where he was the primary official overseeing the federal government's response to the disaster, according to two federal officials who declined to be identified before the announcement.

Brown will be replaced by Coast Guard Vice Adm. Thad w. Allen, who was overseeing New Orleans relief and rescue efforts. Brown has been under fire because of the administration's slow response to the magnitude of the hurricane. On Thursday, questions were raised about whether he padded his resume to highlight his previous emergency management background.

12:40 P.M. - (AP) Authorities said Friday that their first systematic sweep of the city found far fewer bodies than expected, suggesting that Hurricane Katrina's death toll may not be the catastrophic 10,000 feared.

"I think there's some encouragement in what we've found in the initial sweeps that some of the catastrophic deaths that some people predicted may not have occurred," said Terry Ebbert, New Orleans' homeland security chief.

12:33 P.M. - BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- The LSU/North Texas football game, originally scheduled for September third, has been rescheduled for Saturday, October 29th, in Tiger Stadium. The season opener was postponed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The October 29 LSU/North Texas game was made possible when two other games involving North Texas, Louisiana-Lafayette and Louisiana-Monroe were moved to different dates.

12:30 P.M. - Baton Rouge – LOUISIANA SECRETARY OF STATE: Many non-profits are registered with the Secretary of State’s Commercial Division and their current status may be checked on the website, www.sos.louisiana.gov. However, this is just a registration listing, Secretary of State Al Ater warns.“I urge people to continue to give and give generously to charities that are aiding the victims of Hurricane Katrina,” Ater says. “But as the chief business officer of the state, I think it is important to stress that people use caution at this time. Many different groups will be soliciting funds for the victims. I urge everyone to verify the validity of the group to which they give their hard-earned dollars.”

12:15 P.M. - FEMA Director Mike Brown is being removed from his oversight role of the mission in New Orleans and being sent back to Washington.

12:10 P.M. - Police Chief Eddie Compass: No bodies of children found at Convention Center and no evidence of sexual assaults.

12:05 P.M. - Rescue official: No media will be allowed to photograph the recovery mission so that someone in a shelter, say in Houston, won't see a body being taken out of their home.

12:04 P.M. - Rescue official: Hope is that death toll will be far less than the 10,000 number that has been used.

11:45 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): A little more than a week ago, President Bush said he didn't think anyone anticipated that Hurricane Katrina would breach the levees protecting New Orleans.

But, as Hurricane Katrina plowed into the Gulf of Mexico, emergency planners were looking at maps and charts of a hurricane simulation that envisioned exactly that scenario. It projected more than 61,000 deaths and nearly 385,000 injured or sickened in a huge flood. And that was from a Category-3 storm, not a stronger Category-4 like Katrina.

The planners had been working on a year-long, poorly funded project to ready federal and state officials for a hurricane strike on the city.

Many of the predictions for the simulated Hurricane Pam have proved correct, but the planners hope they were wrong about the number of dead.

11:33 A.M. - MOBILE, AL (AP): Disaster officials will move Carnival's Holiday cruise ship from Mobile to either Gulfport, Mississippi, or New Orleans for use by hurricane evacuees.

The Holiday, homeported at Mobile, is one of three Carnival Cruise Line vessels leased by FEMA for six months.

FEMA spokesman James McIntyre says the agency decided to move the ship closer to evacuees who need shelter.

Mobile Mayor Mike Dow says the Federal Emergency Management Agency plans had changed numerous times this week.

The city hopes to recover lost revenue from the Holiday through FEMA.

11:06 A.M. - (AP): New Orleans police are beginning to mark the sites where bodies are being found. Deputy Chief Warren Riley says those bodies will be recovered later.

Police continue going door-to-door, looking for residents that still want to be rescued, and for the remaining holdouts. They're responding to calls from people who has previously decided to stay at their homes but have changed their minds.

Riley says police won't forcibly remove people until they absolutely have to, but he says when it's necessary they will do that.

Riley says most of the people still being found in their homes are older people. He says their homes are all they have, and they're afraid to leave. Police try to reassure them that they and their homes will be safe.

11:03 A.M. - LAS VEGAS (AP): A New Orleans paramedic says being in Las Vegas is "like taking a big, deep breath and being able to exhale."

Keeley Williams is among 44 emergency workers given leave in Vegas this week. The Red Cross and local businesses are footing the bill.

Her group of paramedics and firefighters is the first of several hundred first responders and their families expected to arrive in the next few weeks. Several hotels say they are setting aside rooms.

Another paramedic says it's a relief to "have a sense of normalcy for a few days." Chris Keller spent his first hours touring the strip, playing blackjack and having a few drinks with his partner, whose goals are "to get drunk, see some shows and eat some good food."

11:00 A.M. - TUCSON, AZ (AP): A Hurricane Katrina evacuee in Tucson has been jailed for investigation of drug charges.

Tucson police say New Orleans resident Stanley K. Barton was arrested early yesterday after he attempted to go back into the shelter set up inside Tucson Convention Center with drugs.

Barton was one of the more than 80 evacuees who were airlifted to Tucson on Wednesday.

Police say Barton, who is 51, was caught with one rock of crack cocaine and an unknown amount of marijuana.

Everyone who enters the shelter is searched for weapons, and police say the drugs were found when Barton emptied his pockets. Barton was booked into the Pima County Jail on suspicion of posssession of marijuana and narcotic drugs. Bond was set at $1,500.

10:55 A.M. - (AP): Army personnel in New Orleans say they are finding fewer bodies than they expected.

The commanding general of the 82nd Airborne Division, Major General Bill Caldwell, says his troops had expected to find hundreds of bodies in the area they're clearing. That's Orleans Parish, and about half of it is still under water.

Soldiers are marking sites where bodies are found, but are not removing any corpses.

Caldwell says about 800 people are still living in the French Quarter, which was not as heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina as other parts of New Orleans. He says troops found several hundred more living in a housing project, afraid to go to evacuation centers.

Caldwell also says the military won't be involved in any forced evacuations if those are ordered.

10:45 A.M. - HOUSTON (AP): Evacuees have begun a long walk toward money that could help them recover from Hurricane Katrina.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is distributing debit cards valued at $2,000 to members of households now living in Houston's Astrodome Complex.

Thousands of people are filing into a processing center where FEMA staffers are making sure they're registered for assistance. Armed, uniformed Secret Service agents are overseeing the process.

A FEMA spokeswoman says there are enough cards to cover the families of the 7,000 people now in the three shelters at the Astrodome complex. Other evacuees who need the cards will begin receiving theirs tomorrow.

FEMA has also made $79 million in direct deposits into the bank accounts of evacuees. That includes more than $12 million for those registered in Texas.

The money is considered expedited aid to help families get food, clothing and temporary housing.

10:27 A.M. - WWL-TV: The 75th Annual Coronation of Miss Southern University to be held Friday, September 16 in the Cotillion Ballroom of the Smith-Brown Memorial Union at 7 p.m. will no longer have national recording artist Rome and decorations will not be as elaborate. Miss Southern University Sharika King announced that she will instead donate the $10,000 to the Southern University Hurricane Relief Fund to help purchase books and supplies for displaced students affected by Hurricane Katrina.

"There was a need that had to be met and decorations and a national recording artist is not as important as the students who need books and supplies for school," said Miss Southern University Sharika King.

The University has set up a Hurricane Relief Fund to assist displaced visiting students and evacuees affected by Hurricane Katrina. All funds will be used to purchase books, school supplies and items needed for daily living.

To donate please send monetary contributions in the form of check or money order made payable to Southern University Hurricane Relief Fund. Donations can be mailed to Comptroller's Office, P.O. Box 9494, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70813

For further information regarding the relief fund, please call 225.771.2160.

9:59 A.M. - (AP): Soldiers and police confiscated guns from homeowners as they went house to house, trying to clear the shattered city of holdouts because of the danger of disease and fire. Police on Friday also marked homes with corpses inside, with plans to return later.

As many as 10,000 people were believed to be stubbornly staying put in the city, despite orders from Mayor Ray Nagin earlier this week to leave or be removed by force. By midmorning, though, there were no immediate reports of anyone being taken out forcibly, police said.

Police are "not going to do that until we absolutely have to. We really don't want to do that at all," Deputy Chief Warren Riley said.

Some residents who had previously refused to leave -- whether because they wanted to protect their homes from looters, they did not want to leave their pets behind, or they simply feared the unknown -- are now changing their minds and asking to be rescued, police said.

9:55 A.M. - NATCHEZ, MS (AP): Barge traffic on the Mississippi River is back after being briefly stopped last week when Hurricane Katrina hit the lower reaches of the river.

That means that Midwest grain growers will still be able to ship their products down river on barges to grain elevators on the Gulf Coast. About 63% of the grain capacity on the lower Mississippi had already been restored by Wednesday.

In fact, the biggest potential impediment to barge traffic has nothing at all to do with Katrina. Officials say it's continuing drought conditions that's causing the most problems. River levels are so low that barges may have trouble navigating some areas of the river.

What was affected by Katrina was the Port of New Orleans, which has been all but shut down since the hurricane hit. New Orleans Port officials say they will resume some operations this weekend and hope to have operations at 50% capacity within a month.

9:53 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): You'll be hearing a lot of Aaron Neville on the radio today.

The New Orleans native says, "This is a country that comes together in times of need." The singer is voicing a public service announcement for the American Red Cross that is getting almost as much airplay as a top-ten hit on stations across the country. They're taking part in the National Association of Broadcasters' Broadcast Unity Day.

The idea is for radio and TV stations to sacrifice some ad revenue and play at least one PSA per hour for Katrina relief. The NAB has challenged broadcasters to raise $100 million for hurricane survivors. The organization already has made a $1 million contribution of its own to the Red Cross.

9:51 A.M. - BANGOR, MN (AP): The 256th Brigade Combat Team lost 35 members in Iraq. Now it's time to see what's left back home in Louisiana.

The first planeload of 100 weary Louisiana National Guardsmen has landed in Maine on the way back from Iraq. Now they face the task of finding families scattered by Hurricane Katrina.

At Bangor airport, elderly members of a U.S. veterans group waved flags and offered the soldiers cellphones and chocolate chip cookies.

While some say it's good to be back, the storm meant a total loss for Specialist Nathan Faust of Chalmette, Louisiana. His family home is flooded and so is his fiancee's. Says Faust, "everyone's homeless. I want to move out of the city and start over someplace else."

9:49 A.M. - LITTLE ROCK (AP): The Arkansas Supreme Court has issued an order allowing lawyers from areas affected by Hurricane Katrina to practice in Arkansas.

The order gives lawyers from Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi 60 days in which they can work in Arkansas.

The lawyers have to be in good standing and have to have been displaced by the storm.

The 60-day period begins running today with the issue of the order.

9:48 A.M. - Washington Parish President Toye Taylor: These satellite phones are shaky at best. I was given several phones for use at my disposal. I can call anywhere in the world, except for Washington Parish and Baton Rouge, which is where I need my calls to go.

9:47 A.M. - Taylor: Both school systems here are discussing dates to reopen schools. They have announced tentative dates as of today.

9:46 A.M. - Taylor: We found out Washington Parish is not the place to be during a catastrophe. It'll be months before people can get back to their homes, and I'm even more worried about the economic catastrophe that's going to hit the parish in a couple months.

9:45 A.M. - Taylor: Gov. Blanco said she had never seen a parish with more physical damage than Washington Parish. At least 50 to 60% of the homes sustained some type of damage.

9:39 A.M. - Sen. Mary Landrieu: It’s hard for my colleagues, Democrats and Republicans alike, to fully understand the devastation down here, and the incompetence on the part of FEMA to deliver help to the people living in the Gulf Coast. Don’t give that money to FEMA, give it to local leaders.

Landrieu: What I’m asking for is mortgage relief and small business relief. I’m asking the government to help rebuild hospitals, universities, etc.

Landrieu: Abandoning New Orleans is not an option. Not only is it one of the greatest cities in the world, but you must have control of the area because of our location at the mouth of the Mississippi River.

9:34 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): More than half the people in this country say the flooded areas of New Orleans lying below sea level should be abandoned and rebuilt on higher ground.

An AP-Ipsos poll found that 54% of Americans want the vast sections of New Orleans that were flooded by Hurricane Katrina moved to a safer location. About 80% of the city was flooded at the height of the disaster. The city, home to about 484,000 people, sits six feet below sea level on average. Click here.

9:33 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): Military housing, airport hangars, equipment and power lines were heavily damaged at six military bases across Louisiana and Mississippi, forcing nearly $1 billion in emergency repairs, according to base personnel and other defense officials.

A Navy facility in New Orleans is partially flooded and all but essential personnel are still evacuated. Hurricane winds and heavy rain slammed other bases, but many are up and running now.

Several bases in the region -- particularly in Florida -- received little to moderate damage, and did not have to evacuate. There have been no reported military casualties.

9:12 A.M. - GENEVA (AP) -- International Red Cross officials are putting a price tag on their initial relief efforts from Hurricane Katrina.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies says it will need about $1 billion for the first phase of those efforts.

The American Red Cross, which is focusing its efforts on helping Katrina evacuees, has already received almost half that amount.

An international spokeswoman says the main work is focused outside New Orleans, as part of an effort to encourage people to leave. But she says the Red Cross will probably enter New Orleans itself once the reconstruction process has progressed and flooding has subsided.

The American Red Cross is also installing computers in its shelter so evacuees can search for lost family members. By Wednesday, 118,000 had registered on an international Web site.

9:00 A.M. - New Orleans City Councilwoman Cynthia Willard-Lewis (District E): The waters of Katrina are no respecter of wealth or class. The Lake has reclaimed this area, but we will take it back some time soon.

Lewis: I asked Bill Gates and Microsoft to organize a central database where all these information centers can link to.

Lewis: A more compassionate, organized response is what will be needed next time. New Orleans will be rebuilt to the glory of God and to the people who suffered greatly.

8:45 A.M. - PARIS (AP): Two centuries after France sold the Louisiana Territory and what we now know as New Orleans to the U.S., many French remember the historic connection as they offer hurricane aid.

In 1803, Napoleon sold the vast territory to an eager United States so he could focus his attention on conquering Europe.

Now, the French government has shipped in food and supplies, and well-wishers have offered lodging, student loans, money and sympathy.

In a spontaneous show of support, the French city of Orleans, about 70 miles south of Paris, is collecting contributions, organizing a jazz concert and planning other financial aid.

France's support takes on extra significance at a time when the two nations have been working to restore ties strained over differences about Iraq.

8:36 A.M. - St. Bernard Parish President Henry “Junior” Rodriguez: The water level is going down 12 inches every day. I don’t think there is one home that is inhabitable right now, and no businesses are open. We still haven’t got our streets cleaned yet. We’re trying to get this place cleaned up enough so people can come back and check out their homes and maybe get a little closure.

8:33 A.M. - Rodriguez: We’re getting excellent help from the govt. now. FEMA, National Guard, Coast Guard, they’re all down heRodrre. It’s just a slow progression. Our tax base is gone, and we’re probably in worse shape than New Orleans, because almost all our homes have been destroyed.

8:30 A.M. - Rodriguez: I haven't seen anybody from Entergy yet.

8:10 A.M. - St. Tammany Parish President Kevin Davis: A word of caution for those bringing their children back to St. Tammany Parish with them: keep an eye out for snakes and watch out for pieces of debris (nails, splinters, etc.) before you let them run around or play.

7:57 A.M. - SAN ANTONIO (AP): Everything borrowed, everything new, the old is just gone, but nobody's blue. That's the rewrite of the old wedding rhyme for newly married Marvin and Janetel Martin. Just a week ago, they were rescued from the roof of a flooded Louisiana hotel after four days with no food or water.

In addition to nearly killing the couple, Hurricane Katrina blew away their September 24 bayou wedding plans.

Enter Red Cross volunteer Patricia Fugitt in San Antonio. She spent hours lining up the donated limo, wedding clothes and everything else a wedding needs. Tuesday, the Martins became the first evacuees married in Building 1536 at KellyUSA, a business park in the city.

In the words of Marvin Martin, "Don't ever give up hope. God will make it all work out."

7:56 A.M. - CHAPEL HILL, NC (AP): Free tuition at North Carolina public universities awaits college students displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

The university system's Board of Governors voted yesterday to waive tuition and required fees this fall for students whose Gulf Coast colleges have closed since the hurricane struck.

So far, 65 students -- most from Tulane University and the University of New Orleans -- have enrolled in the North Carolina system's 16 universities.

UNC officials estimate the waiver will cost the system about $400,000.

UNC President Molly Broad says the UNC campuses expect to accommodate about 100 students affected by the storm.

Broad initially asked the board to offer a free semester only to North Carolina residents who were displaced. But board members opted to extend it to non-North Carolinians.

7:55 A.M. - TUCSON, AZ (AP): Some of the refugees who've fled storm damaged areas of New Orleans and are now calling Arizona home, say they didn't want to leave.

But a few days on dry land in Tucson has changed some minds and many are thankful that New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin issued the evacuation order.

One victim says he arrived in Tucson "like a diplomat" and is thankful for the warm treatment he's received.

Another New Orleans survivor reunited with her brother in Apache Junction, says she lived on cat food until authorities took her away.

Both are among about 80 refugees who spent last night at the Tucson Convention Center. Red Cross volunteers, along with Tucson and Pima County agencies, have set up accommodations for 800 victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Arizona is set up to take in more refugees if needed.

7:54 A.M. - (AP): Surviving after Hurricane Katrina is even more of a problem for illegal immigrants.

The aftermath has meant not only living without a home, money or belongings, but also steering clear of the government officials who have flocked to the area. The immigrants fear deportation. Some sneak into shelters at night and then slip out in the morning, praying they won't be noticed.

Others avoid government help altogether, preferring to ride out the destruction alone.

Tens of thousands of illegal immigrants live in the hardest-hit areas, although nobody knows exactly how many.

Jeffrey Passel of the Pew Hispanic Center says a conservative estimate is 20,000 to 35,000 in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

7:52 A.M. - MONROE (AP): The Monroe City School Board has voted unanimously to hire 11 new teachers.

The new hires come in the wake of the enrollment of hundreds of students displaced by Hurricane Katrina who began school this week. Superintendent James Dupree says the number of enrollees had increased to 459, from an estimated 318 on Tuesday.

7:13 A.M. - MONTGOMERY, AL (AP): Farmers, ranchers and agricultural organizations are sending hay and supplies to assist neighbors in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi whose farms and livestock were devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

Missouri-based National Biodiesel Board plans to ship diesel fuel made from vegetable oils to the disaster area once it gets approval from FEMA.

Alabama Agriculture Commissioner Ron Sparks says his department will be coordinating the farm-aid for farmers in Mississippi, Louisiana and southern Alabama, where some farmers are still recovering from last year's Hurricane Ivan.

Sparks says a request for assistance went out through the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture and people are already responding with offers of feed, fencing, veterinary help and transportation.

The American Farm Bureau Federation, estimates direct agricultural losses from the cataclysmic storm at $1 billion, but the full extend of the damage may not be known for weeks.

The federation also said U.S. agriculture could suffer another $1 b illion in losses because of higher fuel prices and supply disruptions.

7:12 A.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): Federal officials have hired a Houston-based disaster response company to deliver bodies of some of Hurricane Katrina's dead to their relatives.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency hired Kenyon Worldwide Disaster Management to coordinate the recovery of bodies in Orleans, Jefferson, Saint Bernard and Plaquemines parishes.

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has said the death toll in his city alone could reach ten-thousand -- and Louisiana officials are ordering 25,000 body bags.

A state news release says Kenyon will help each parish coroner meet his legal duty to recover, identify and return the dead to their families in a dignified manner.

According to Kenyon's Web site, it has responded to disasters dating to a 1929 Imperial Airways plane crash in England. Most recently, Kenyon's helped recover bodies or provide mortuary services after last December's South Asian killer tsunami, the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the TWA Flight 800 crash off Long Island in 1996.

7:10 A.M. - BROWNSVILLE, TX (AP): Police in Brownsville, Texas, are passing the hat on street corners to raise money for New Orleans police.

They say motorists are chipping everything from small change to $10 bills.

Officers raised about $5,000 in three hours yesterday. About 45 officers signed up for the collection drive that will continue through Sunday.

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin's estimates one-third of his city's police officers are missing, have quit or died in the days following Hurricane Katrina. He says many have lost homes and family members in floodwaters. Two officers have taken their own lives.

That leaves a thousand officers on active duty in the Crescent City.

7:05 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): The devastation of Hurricane Katrina may remind some people of 9/11 but other's notice a big difference.

The extraordinary national and political cooperation after the attacks is nowhere to be found in Katrina's aftermath.

Finger pointing and blame have replaced images of stunned Americans rallying around President Bush and Congress four years ago.

One expert suggests it's because there is no tangible external enemy, like Osama bin Laden, to blame.

The latest Pew research poll says two-thirds of the public think Bush could have acted more quickly after the storm. An Associated Press-Ipsos Poll finds nearly two-thirds of Americans think the country is headed in the wrong direction.

7:03 A.M. - Sen. David Vitter: I think the leadership in the Congress did the right thing in trying to arrange a bipartisan commission to examine what went wrong.

6:57 A.M. - Vitter: We should be thinking outside the box when it comes to diversifying local businesses. We need to look at this as optimistically as possible. We have to give businesses incentives to return; people won’t come back to the city if there are no jobs. The jobs end of this is just as important as something like rebuilding roads.

6:52 A.M. - Vitter: I am absolutely convinced Congress will be there over the next few months to help us.

6:43 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): FEMA Director Michael Brown's credentials are facing new questions. Time Magazine reports his official bio and online legal profile have discrepancies.

Brown's bio on the FEMA Web site said he oversaw emergency services in Edmond, Oklahoma. But a spokeswoman for the city tells Time that Brown's position was "more like an intern."

A FEMA official says Brown did start as an intern, but became an assistant city manager and had a distinguished record.

The magazine also reports Brown's profile on the Web site www. FindLaw.com lists him as an "outstanding Political Science Professor" at Central State University. The school says he was a student.

6:40 A.M. - WASHINGTON (AP): Hurricane Katrina has darkened the country's mood and most people think New Orleans ought to be moved somewhere else.

Among the findings of a new AP-Ipsos poll, more than half those questioned say areas below sea level that got swamped should be rebuilt on higher ground. That's practically the whole city.

And President Bush's handling of the crisis has sunk his job approval rating to just 39%, a new low. Two-thirds of those questioned think Washington wasn't adequately prepared but they also blame state and local governments for the slow response.

The disaster has also boosted pessimism in general. Two-thirds of the people think America is headed in the wrong direction.

Despite the gloom, they still believe in the need to help out. Nearly two-thirds say they've already donated to hurricane relief.

6:36 A.M. - St. Tammany Parish President Kevin Davis: Houses marked with an "X" and a number does not mean that home has dead people in it.

6:31 A.M. - Davis: If you don't have water, sewerage and electricity, you will be asked to leave your home. I recommend you find relatives or friends who are nearby whom you could stay with while you repair your home.

6:28 A.M. - Davis: Please continue to boil your water.

6:25 A.M. - ATLANTA (AP): One of the nation's largest black organizations is criticizing the government's handling of the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

The National Baptist Convention USA is urging its members to prepare to make the black community's needs heard before next year's congressional elections. The hurricane became the focus of a rally by convention officials, who urged members at the organization's annual conference to remember the government's handling of the hurricane disaster in upcoming elections.

The church conference began Monday in Atlanta. Last year, the group gathered in New Orleans.

The convention's president, the Reverend William Shaw of Philadelphia, said the hurricane "exposed a lack of caring to adequately respond to the most vulnerable."

The convention urged its members to remain informed in public policy issues that affect black communities and warned against being influenced by conservative religious groups.

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On the Net: National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.: http://www.nationalbaptist.com

6:07 A.M. - (AP): It's something you wouldn't expect to see in New Orleans. Despite the destruction, Doctor Frank Rosinia has been taking his daily 30-mile ride along the Mississippi River levee.

Rosinia says you have to do what gives you strength. He's an anesthesiologist and rides the bike to get ready for a grueling stretch of work at a hospital.

He says riding alone now "feels strange" because he's used to a crowd being out along the levee. But he hopes his rides are the first signs of life returning to normal in New Orleans.

6:05 A.M. - BATON ROUGE (AP): A pregnant New Orleans woman who began to experience contractions shortly after Hurricane Katrina says she didn't have time to think about anything.

Bunne Burke says to get out of the city she had to wade through three-foot-high water while carrying her nine-month-old daughter.

Burke was airlifted to Woman's Hospital in Baton Rouge, where she prematurely gave birth to her second child, a boy. Her husband stayed behind in New Orleans, stranded by the rising water.

Woman's Hospital has become a sanctuary for babies, coordinating the transfer of 121 infants from flooded hospitals in New Orleans. All are said to be doing well.

5:57 A.M. - NEW CASTLE (AP): Police in hurricane ravaged New Orleans are getting 30 police cars from their comrades in New Castle County, Delaware.

It's the result of a friendship that began seven years ago between New Orleans Police Chief Eddie Compass and New Castle County police captain Debra Rees after they met at a conference.

In the aftermath of the storm, Rees asked Compass how her department could help and he told her he didn't need officers -- he needed cars.

The donated cars have about 100,000 miles on them and were to be sold at auction. They are getting new lettering and are expected to be delivered by next week.

5:48 A.M. - UNITED NATIONS (AP): A top official says the UN will get more involved in Hurricane Katrina relief effort. Jan Egeland is the UN's undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs. He expects more international relief flights to arrive in the U.S. as America asks for more help.

Small U.N. teams already are helping coordinate international aid. Teams in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Denton, Texas, are offering expert advice in several areas, including water and sanitation, health coordination and child protection.

Egeland says "the whole world has been really shaken" by images of the damage and suffering.

4:45 A.M. - JACKSON, MS (AP): Even as crews continue to sift through the rubble for bodies, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour is urging state leaders to make plans for the future.

The governor said he is committed to not only rebuild, but to have a renaissance on the Gulf Coast that will improve upon it's pre-Katrina appearance.

He says "a breathtaking amount of infrastructure" is destroyed in south Mississippi -- highways, bridges, rail lines and water and sewer systems.

About 203,000 homes and businesses statewide remain without power. Mississippi Power Company plans to restore electricity to all the customers who can take it by Sunday. The company serves most of the Gulf Coast and parts of east Mississippi.

1:55 A.M. - (AP): Already, talk is turning to getting the chefs of New Orleans back to their kitchens.

It could take months, though, to know the extent of the damage to what was one of the nation's most vibrant restaurant scenes. And years for the tourists to return to the home of spicy, seafood-laden Cajun and Creole dishes that grew out of the region's ethnic hodge-podge of immigrants and slaves.

It's the city that made television chefs Emeril Lagasse and Paul Prudhomme. It's where Tabasco rules.

But after Hurricane Katrina, the survival of that culture is in question.

Much of the fishing fleets and processors who provided the local seafood featured so prominently have been decimated.

If restaurants do return, experts say there will probably be fewer of them, possibly limited to the French Quarter and Garden District.

FRIDAY - 12:35 A.M. - SAN ANTONIO (AP): The Alamodome could be home for four New Orleans Saints games this season due to Hurricane Katrina. The San Antonio Express-News is reporting that the team is close to a deal with San Antonio officials to host the games.

A high-ranking city official says the NFL hasn't signed off on the deal. However, other government sources say they don't expect any problem getting league approval.

The Saints have set up temporary operations in San Antonio in the wake of Katrina. The newspaper also says the plan calls for three of the Saints home games to be played at Tiger Stadium on the LSU campus, just 80 miles away from New Orleans.

The Express-News says an agreement could come as soon as today.

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