Thousands still need rescue

By boat and helicopter, rescuers are still pulling hundreds of people a day from rooftops, homes and buildings in stricken New Orleans a week after Hurricane Katrina's devastating strike, officials said.

As rescue operations continue, the US Army Corps of Engineers said it is making progress toward pumping out the city but still expects it could take 80 days or more to complete the job.

Local officials believe there are thousands of people remaining in the stricken city, despite the evacuation of hundreds of thousands before Katrina hit and tens of thousands more by the US military and other agencies after the storm.

Many of those remaining may still be caught in homes surrounded by flood water.

"We still have thousands in the city. We are still rescuing people off rooftops and from attics," New Orleans City Councilwoman Jackie Clarkson said.

Police said they were receiving 1,000 or more emergency calls for help each day, many of them from people still trapped in their homes and attics.

"I believe we have a few thousand more to rescue," Ms Clarkson said.

But police officials said the armada of small boats participating in rescue operations were not able to respond to all of the calls.

The US Army Corps of Engineers said it had 24 pumps in eastern areas of the city moving water out. In St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes, water was draining from the streets.

"There are areas that are receding," said Mike Rogers, an Army Corps coordinator. "We've just got a long way to go."

Rock was being shipped in to repair the levees, Mr Rogers said.

Giant pumps that can move large quantities of water were crippled by the storm. Getting them to work again is expected to take up to a week, and engineers estimate it will then take up to 80 days to clear New Orleans of water.