Saturday, September 3 2005 09:57 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Washington: Facing flak for the delay in relief efforts, United States (US) President George Bush yesterday (September 2, 2005) conceded the initial response to Hurricane Katrina was 'not acceptable' even as he launched a damage-control exercise by declaring emergency in Texas and vowing before distraught residents of the worst-hit New Orleans that the city will rise again.

Four days after killer Katrina struck the US Golf coast states of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, the scale of the casualties is still not known but some officials claim that it could be in thousands. Hundreds of people remain stranded without food or water in New Orleans, where extra troops have been dispatched to quell lawlessness.

"A lot of people are working hard to help those who have been affected and I want to thank the people for their efforts," he said, adding, "The results are not acceptable."

Visiting the marooned New Orleans, Bush assured that the aid was 'surging' in and the city will emerge from its 'darkest days.' "Out of New Orleans is going to come that great city again. That's what's going to happen. But now we're in the darkest days and so we got a lot of work to do."

The President verbally declared an emergency in the State of Texas and ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local response efforts to assist evacuees from the area struck by Hurricane Katrina and to provide them emergency assistance.

"I'm down here to comfort people. I'm down here to let people know that we're going to work with the states and the local folks with a strategy to get this thing solved," Bush said even as New Orleans Mayor, Ray Nagin, blasted federal officials for the delay in relief efforts.

Nagin alleged that the officials were clueless about how to deal with this 'biggest crises' in American history and denounced the level of outside help received. "People are dying here," he said.

"Don't tell me 40,000 people are coming here," a visibly emotional Nagin said on CNN television. "They're not here."

"It is too doggone late!" he said angrily.

Speaking in Mobile, Alabama, Bush said the USD 10.5bn emergency aid approved by the Senate was just a small down payment on the cost of helping people rebuild.

He went on to visit Biloxi, on the Mississippi coast, where he comforted a woman who wept as she described how she had lost everything.

"I want to assure the people of the affected areas and this country that we'll deploy the assets necessary to get the situation under control, to get the help to the people who have been affected, and that we're beginning long-term planning to help those who have been displaced, as well as long-term planning to help rebuild the communities that have been affected," he had said as he started his tour of affected areas.

Situation in New Orleans' convention centre, where up to 20,000 more are stranded, are deteriorating every day with people being forced to live in suffocating conditions and squalor. Up to 60,000 people could still be stranded in the city, the US coastguard says.

Shoot-to-kill orders were given in New Orleans in an attempt to bring back order.

Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco said 300 troopers, who have returned from Iraq, will be deployed and have been authorised to open fire on 'hoodlums' who have been terrorising the city in the wake of the disaster.