Thousands leave New Orleans
2005-09-02 14:47
New Orleans - Mayor Ray Nagin ordered an immediate mandatory evacuation on Sunday for all of New Orleans, a city of 485 000 people, as Hurricane Katrina bore down with 257km/h winds.
Ten refuges of last resort were set up, including the Superdome stadium.
"There doesn't seem to be any relief in sight," Governor Kathleen Blanco said, joining the mayor at a news conference.
The mayor called the order unprecedented, but said Katrina's storm surge would likely top the city's protective levees.
Blanco said President George W Bush called and personally appealed for the mandatory evacuation for the city, which sits below sea level.
- AP