Katrina: 40 000 troops needed
2005-09-02 14:30
Baton Rouge - Louisiana governor Kathleen Blanco said on Thursday she had asked for 40 000 uniformed troops to restore order in hurricane-hit New Orleans.
"We will be getting all the troops we need for as long as we need," Blanco told reporters.
She added that she'd asked for "no less than 40 000" uniformed troops of any kind.
Blanco said there were 4 000 police in the New Orleans area, amid reports of shootings, lawlessness and mass looting.
More troops were pouring into the southern city and by Friday there should be a 12 000-strong force of national guard troops, Blanco said, adding that she had authorised law enforcement to use "all necessary force" to quell unrest.
The rampant lawlessness distracted from frantic efforts to evacuate the city, which was still 80% underwater.
As survivors huddled in the rare dry areas, they complained of a lack of basic security and help.
There were tales of dead bodies lying in the open air, people dying off in a convention centre being used as a refugee shelter and shooting and fist fights.
'Hundreds' of looters
Colonel Henry Whitehorn of the Louisiana state police vowed that bands of armed bandits would not be allowed to terrorise hurricane survivors or take control of the city.
"We will start securing these individuals. These individuals will not take control of New Orleans," he said, but admitted that only three or four people had so far been arrested.
Residents reported hundreds of looters on the streets, hijackings, armed robberies and even shots fired at helicopters evacuating patients and babies from hospitals.
Media reports said one gang had commandeered a telephone company van to carry out robberies, while Fox News television said on Wednesday that two men with AK-47 semi-automatic rifles had opened fire on a police station.
Hundreds of police had already been taken off search-and-rescue duties to stem the violence.
But, officials denied reports unrest had forced the suspension of the evacuation of survivors.
- AFP