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CNN Live Saturday

Hurricane Katrina: The Aftermath

Aired September 03, 2005 - 16:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A member of the Bush Cabinet will soon see the devastation firsthand. The Pentagon says Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will be traveling to Louisiana and Mississippi tomorrow.
Hello and welcome back to continuing coverage of state of emergency, the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. I'm Fredricka Whitfield at CNN Center in Atlanta.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good afternoon, everyone, I'm Tony Harris. Our reporters stationed all along the storm's path of destruction, they'll bring you live reports from some of the most critical spots all throughout the hour.

WHITFIELD: A top priority for military personnel today in New Orleans is to evacuate those people who are still in and around the city's Convention Center. Joining us now from outside the Convention Center is CNN's Jeff Koinange. And just hours ago, Jeff, it was full of people, we're seeing just a sporadic presence now?

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Fredricka.

And you can see these streets are basically empty, just a couple vehicles going past me, official vehicles. But the streets now practically empty. That shot behind me there, Fredricka, is the National Guard loading the sick, the elderly, people in wheelchairs, putting them in those U-Hauls and that's how they'll be transported out of here.

They're taken to central point and then put onto buses, and there were several hundred in wheelchairs. Sick, elderly, that's how they're going to go. Basically, this Convention Center, 24 hours ago, there was at least several thousand people, now practically empty, and you can see the portable toilets over there. The green structures, they were literally brought, in I'd say about an hour and a half ago, Fredricka.

This was the main problem here, toilet facilities, none of these were on the ground up until an hour and a half ago, just when everybody had left. One of the comedies of errors in this entire project, where people will be looking back at what happened to this disaster, they'll have to analyze why it took so long to get to this point.

Fredricka?

WHITIFIELD: And, Jeff, are those port-a-potties there now because they anticipate the many people who left the convention center to stand in the long lines to go to the buses will actually get rejected because they don't have enough buses and make their way back to the convention center stay yet another night?

KOINANGE: That's absolutely correct. What's going to happen is because there are not enough buses, Fredricka, what's going to happen -- and there are long, long lines, blocks long, people told to make single file lines, and they are lining up -- they're not making any noise, they're not resisting it any way. But basically, if they don't fit in all the buses today they'll all have to come back here, find a small patch just like you see over here, everyone has sectioned out their own patch.

Going to have to come back, sleep under the stars one more night. Tomorrow try again to get on the bus else that will arrive. Again, this is day six, a lot of people are still angry, a lot of people are questioning all kinds of officials. But at the end of the day, Fredricka, despite everything that went wrong, at least it's gotten to this stage, this Convention Center boulevard is practically empty. The last, the stragglers, the old, the sick, the elderly, they are being taken, and if the buses don't fit tonight, at least hopefully, the next day or so, this whole place will be empty.

WHITFIELD: And Jeff, that Convention Center is right along the Mississippi River. How far a walk do many of those people, the evacuees, those stranded, have to walk in order to get to the buses?

KOINANGE: Good question. Well, basically it's about I would say three blocks to the left over here. About three blocks where they've sectioned out an entire block and they're telling people to form two lines, two single file lines. So the good thing is, those who can't make it that far are put in U-Hauls just like that. Which is a good thing. At least care is taken. But other people can't wait for that. They want to get in line quickly, so what they're doing, they're putting the sick and elderly in shopping carts and actually wheeling them towards the buses. A pathetic sight in any instance but they have no choice, they don't want to be separated from their family members, they want to make sure they all go together.

Because a lot of these people have already lost family members as a result of the hurricane. So, basically, they want to stick together or go together. These are the folks who just either don't have family or are too sick to move further, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Remarkable. And Jeff, before I let you go, we see members of the MP, National Guard, behind you. When they came in, did they bring medical care to some of those people you are describing, who are not likely to get on a bus because there aren't enough buses?

KOINANGE: Yes, indeed, and that's a very good point. Not only did they bring food, MREs, and also thousands of tons of - liters of water, but people were walking up to the offices and saying, hey, folks we have someone who's sick, can you come help us? And they were tending to them which is a great thing to see at this point, Fredricka, because people have been dehydrated. There is a lot of disease here. You can see the mounds of garbage, this can only translate into one thing, and that's disease. So yes, every time they approach an officer, an official of National Guard, they were getting attention, which was at least a positive sign coming out of all of this, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Terrible situation, Jeff Koinange, thanks so much outside the Convention Center. Tony?

HARRIS: Well, Fred, many of the evacuees are be taken to Louis Armstrong Airport outside of New Orleans. CNN's Ed Lavandera is standing by for us at the airport for an update. Ed?

ED LAVENDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Tony.

Well, we've been reporting here since Tuesday night. And the first 24 hours was method kind of methodical, it was kind of slow. The last 72 or so have just been a nonstop stream of people arriving from various parts of the city -- from where Jeff was reporting at the Convention Center, other people plucked from rooftops, plucked from their streets, from neighborhoods, from hospitals, nursing homes, it runs the gamut from all over the city.

And just when you think you couldn't possibly bring more people to the airport, more people arrive. Another wave of helicopters here. At its busiest points, the aviation director told me there were ten helicopters landing every minute, dropping a dozen or so people off. Using luggage carts to bring them all here.

This is a much more organized process that exists here at the airport now. Even though it looks chaotic, officials here believe they've got things moving in a much better direction, they have got people coming off the tarmac, those who need medical attention get taken into the triage, or the field hospital that has been set up here. Others are getting processed to be put on flights out of here.

However, there are still about, the last time we checked a few hours ago, we were able to get some hard numbers as to the number of people here. There were about 5,000. I suspect that number has gone up significantly in the last few hours. And inside the terminal, there are hundreds of people waiting to catch these flights out and it has become a very desperate scene.

We've seen former Vice President Al Gore arrives on American Airlines to take 130 critically ill patients out of here. Many elderly just laying on stretchers inside the terminal. We've also seen Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist making his way throughout airport, helping out. Of course, he is a doctor, helping out with the medical technician who are here on the ground. But officials here tell me this scene could continue to play out here at airport, anywhere for the next day or so to as many as four days from now. It's just impossible to tell right now. Tony?

HARRIS: And a couple of questions. Let me follow up on Fredricka's line of questioning to Jeff. The people who arrive there and then are being flown out. These are people who had some kind of a medical assessment, and do we have any idea where those people are going once they're being flown out of that area? LAVANDERA: They're taken all over the country, from many cities in Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, heard some going to Colorado. At one point I was told by a FEMA official here, that they were doing a nationwide bed count in hospitals to figure out where they had space to put people. They're doing the best they can, I understand, to keep track of manifests and who's getting on which flights to go where, but that is a process that officials acknowledge that they are behind on, and it's very possible that could create even more chaos in the days to come.

HARRIS: And let's talk about the system they may be behind on. We're talking about people getting off of aircraft, going in and being processed by FEMA. They're filling out forms, they're being put into the system. Are they being given vouchers on the spot for food and lodgings?

LAVANDERA: What I have seen is a National Guard troops who have arrived here on the scene who are using computers and lists and trying to write down everybody's name as they get on flights and try to process.

Of course, that's all loaded manually back into computers and that sort of thing. That's why they say there's going to be a delay in updating all these manifests and having an up to date manifest as it comes up.

The other problem I foresee, and this is just what I've experienced and what I can report to you just having seen this. I've spoken to many elderly people here. One gentleman who came off one of these helicopters had had no idea where he was. We're dealing with a certain level of people who just need constant care from nursing homes who just, if they don't know where they are in New Orleans, you can imagine if you dump them in Tennessee, somewhere, they're not going to know where they are there.

There are going to be a lot of confused people on the other ends of these flight, and I think FEMA officials are well aware, that that is something very difficult to keep up with in the weeks ahead.

HARRIS: Oh boy. Ed Lavandera for us. Ed, thank you.

WHITFIELD: And now head east to Biloxi, Mississippi, also the scene of immense devastation. It's seeing an increased presence of military troops today. Joining us now in Biloxi is Ted Rowlands, and that increased military presence translates into what, Ted?

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there have been problems now with some looting in Biloxi and the surrounding towns, and there have been small reports of problems all week, and now that is starting to escalate. The National Guard, their presence here is helping to alleviate that.

Still, residents that we're talking to just this morning say it is getting to be an issue here. There are a couple of other issues that are coming up as time goes on, one of the other ones is gasoline, people are now getting out of their homes, they're coming back to find what's left of their homes or leaving homes that they've been hunkered down and they can't find gas. They're running out along the sides of the road and gas lines stretch for miles.

We saw a gas line today that extended about a mile-long, and they didn't have gas, there was a rumor out that there might be gas there, people had been waiting literally for hours.

The other problem, the bodies, they continue to find more and more bodies and the coroner in Harrison County here is completely overwhelmed. They're using mortuary employees to help them out with duties to come out, collect the bodies.

The residents are telling people where the bodies are. The CNN crew was shown a body here in Biloxi from neighbors. It was under a porch and they said they've talk to law enforcement and they've been told don't touch the body, but there it sits. It is a very, very difficult process.

There's no electricity here, so they're taking these bodies and putting them in white vans or semi trucks, basically cooler trucks, and that is where they are sitting now. The identification process is going on simultaneously, the federal government, FEMA, has sent in specialized teams that work on identification, but as every day goes on, that process gets more and more difficult, not only collecting the bodies because of the decomposition but the identification process as well.

Safe to say, another very warm day, and it is going to be a very long rest of the weekend and into next week collecting bodies, and they're still technically looking for signs of life. We haven't heard reports of since Wednesday of anybody being rescued. But they say they're still also looking actively for signs of life.

WHITFIELD: And Ted, at the very top, you mentioned the looting and the military police there on the lookout for looting. But is there becoming any justification for some of the looting, because people are hungry, they're thirsty or even barefoot.

ROWLANDS: Well, you know, that's on a case-by-case basis, and it would depend who you're talking to whether that is going to be justified. But one could easily see how one would resort to looting. Gasoline is a huge commodity here and we have had reports of people taking other people's gasoline at gunpoint. People that have gas cans on their car full of gasoline, and you know, you could argue either way. If someone is that desperate. They've been put in the position how much can you blame them?

On the other hand, everybody is in the same boat, and it's just a tough, tough situation here, nothing compared to New Orleans in terms of the lawlessness, but it is a tough situation nonetheless.

WHITFIELD: All right. Ted Rowlands, thanks so much from Biloxi, Mississippi and now -- go ahead.

HARRIS: I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm just overwhelmed by all this.

WHITIFIELD: We've got a lot going on.

HARRIS: Yeah. I'm sorry. Well, from -- I think ...

WHITFIELD: All right. Army Corps of Engineers talking now at FEMA. Let's listen in.

QUESTION: You said you were going to be transporting some 5,000 people from the New Orleans to Eglin Air Force Base near Alexandria and they said there was more than enough room open to shelter there, and they said they were going to start taking people there now and said it has to be open.

Any response from any of you all to that and whether that's possible or whether that will be done?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have not heard that, but I do know that some of the planning that has been ongoing has considered all of the DOD installations and civilian population centers in all surrounding areas to include Louisiana. So it would not surprise me if Eglin Air Park, which is just up the road from Fort Polk, Louisiana, would be used for that effort. But at this time, I have not gotten a word from that. In fact, we are currently evacuating by air and ground people to Arkansas of the vicinity of Fort Smith and Fort Chafee.

QUESTION: General, what kind of situation -- You say we have a handle on health there now in New Orleans.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's the general, I'm the admiral.

QUESTION: I'm sorry.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We all just work for you. So, you know.

QUESTION: You say you have a handle now on the health situation. But clearly, the longer the water remains in New Orleans, there is so much in the way of bacteria, bodies, what is the situation long-term, and how important and how critical is it to get the water out of there, and what kind of threats do we face before it is removed?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I think clearly that is an issue that, if you have large standing water areas, it's a breeding ground for vectors. And I think that's our biggest concern. Certainly, bacterial infections not infrequently in disasters. We've had concerns about cholera, about typhoid and other infectious diseases, those are issues we're aware of and we're monitoring closely.

Part of the activity working together with the state is can we keep track of what patients are showing up with what infectious disease as they go through the shelter process, so that we know if we're beginning to see early indication of such a thing. We haven't seen that as yet.

And I would point out and I had experience in Indonesia with the tsunami, the last few epic disasters we've been either fortunate or we've learned how to do this right. I won't claim credit. But we've seen very little of those large epidemic outbreaks. And we're employing all the same approaches to ensure we don't have problems with those infectious diseases.

I make one comment about the question about the question about Eglin Air Park. We will have part of our officer's staff and about 1,000 beds of capability of care there, not that we anticipate providing care, there necessarily, we have them staged if we need them elsewhere in the state. If they were to bring folks there, we have health capability to provide additional support, if that should happen.

GUY: Other questions?

QUESTION: Of the total in the convention center, colonel, how many have been evacuated totally, and is it a combination of bus and air, and where have they gone?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right. Good question.

Total, as of this point is right around 4,000. That started early this morning. All the people that are currently located in the vicinity of the Convention Center are being evacuated from that location, a central location by bus. Combination of school buses, local school buses and commercial buses, again, that have been brought from all over the nation.

The commercial buses, because they've got sufficient facilities and comfort, those are the buses that we're transporting by ground out of state, again, currently to Arkansas. The school bus evacuees are going to the New Orleans International Airport where they are loaded on aircraft, and both military and civilian as they are flow in and are flown out to what is, again, currently Arkansas at this point.

QUESTION: Do you have a total number of how many evacuees eventually have been taken since this time?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right, and I believe I may have earlier said 4200, and I never professed to be great at math. But it's roughly at this point 42,000 individuals have been evacuated. Again, mixture of medical, those that have needed medical needs or attention, and just general population.

QUESTION: How were the bodies -- obviously people died while there. What is being done with those bodies and where are they being taken?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Again, that the point, we're very focused on those that have survived. We clearly want to get those individuals out first. I do know that there are bodies out there. That is not what we are currently charged with doing, that is not our mission, our mission is to get survivors out, and I'm sure that at this point there is planning ongoing as to how that is going to be handled.

QUESTION: Do you know how many bodies there are?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't answer that particular question. But I can tell you that the entity that works with the state to deal with body issues, and they're involved here, is the Disaster Mortuary Assistance Unit. And they're working closely with the states here about all the bodies that may potentially be involved in this event. And I think they have a pretty reasonable plan worked out with the state at least, as I understand it, I've worked with the D-Morts at the World Trade Center.

QUESTION: Are they on sight at the Convention Center right now?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not sure if they are at this moment onsite at that center. I know that they are now ready and prepared to perform the functions they usually perform with that.

QUESTION: Are there any ways to quantify that as far as what's been ordered? At the St. Gabriel Morgue there's refrigerated trucks there? What's in Louisiana?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I don't think -- I haven't been apprised they're bringing refrigerator trucks. I think their concern overall in this disaster is that there may be some number in the thousands, 2,000 range, not sure. I think they're anticipating that, they're thinking maybe worst case, they may have a higher number, but they're trying to work with both eventualities that there may be a higher number. However, nobody really knows what the total number of deaths at this point might be.

QUESTION: But the St. Gabriel facility is anticipating 2,000 to 3,000?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I didn't say that. I said they're thinking in the range of 1,000, it 2,000 at this point. I don't know what number, nobody knows.

QUESTION: When do you think you can start giving us a rolling count day by day so we can see how things are going?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right, I think they have worked with the state now for plans that will deal appropriately with family concerns, family issues and so on. And as they work through that plan, they will start to do what they do with management of the fatalities. I don't know if that's tomorrow or if it's the next day. I haven't seen the target date. Frankly, I'm on station here only - not even 24 hours, so I haven't received that level of granularity in briefing from them, but we will work that, we will let you know when we can start that. Whether that's tomorrow or the next day. I'm not sure.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Take one more?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you, all.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

WHITIFIELD: All right, you were listening to a number of officials there where we're expecting to hear from the director of FEMA, Michael Brown, you saw him in the background, but the information coming out of Baton Rouge right now is that they are evacuating by air and ground to not only Texas but they're taking evacuees to Arkansas as well. And so far the number is 42,000 of the number of people who have been evacuated, and that includes patients who are in great need, and the general population as well.

They are concerned about the spread of infectious diseases, they're doing what they can, they say, to bring in medical teams and supplies. And at this juncture, problem compounding problems, there is some anticipation they may find somewhere between 1,000 to 2,000 bodies, but that number is still unclear.

HARRIS: And still ahead from dome to dome, 18,000 evacuees are now living inside the Astrodome complex. An estimated 200,000 are in the city of Houston today. We will go there live next.

And thousands waiting to be rescued, living outside on the streets surrounded by sewage. We'll look at health risks these Americans are now facing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Look at these pictures, Fred.

WHITFIELD: It's remarkable.

HARRIS: It really is. Homeless and nowhere to go. That's the reality for hundreds of thousands of people along the Gulf Coast. Many are finding shelter in Houston, Texas. Let's go live to Houston now and CNN's Sean Callebs.

Hi, Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Tony.

Indeed, we can tell you, very crowded inside the Astrodome, just now beginning to fill up in the Reliant Arena, the Reliant Center, to my right and to my left.

But even though the crowded conditions remain inside, cots, food, medical attention, the situation is becoming much more calm around here. This instant city, if you will, is beginning to take shape.

Let me show you what has been going on here for the past several hours. There are 16,000 people inside the Houston Astrodome, simply too crowded. The Red Cross, FEMA, initially thought they could put 24,000 people in there. Once they began putting cots down, they realized that estimate was way too high.

So they began to try to find other places. So the overcrowded conditions are being alleviated in the Astrodome. They are now moving people from the Astrodome to nearby Reliant Center. This is going in very small groups.

People 15 to 20 at a time are taking what meager belongings they have. They are making a slow trek over. There are legions of volunteers on hand to do everything they can to make that short trip very comfortable.

There are also at least 800 more evacuees coming here by bus, but not from the New Orleans area but the Lafayette area and from a facility known as the Cajundome. Texas governor has indicated that all refugees coming by vehicle will first stop in Houston before they go to other cities. But they will be taken to Dallas, San Antonio, Huntsville, Corpus Christi, Lubbock. Those are the cities right now, and that list could grow.

Now, how many people, how many evacuees are in Houston from the New Orleans area? Well, there are at least 26,000 people here, 42,000 looking for places, including those from here. And the city officials tell us there are probably 45,000 hotel rooms. And you can figure at least two to three people in each of those rooms. So a great number. However, county officials say they are doing everything they can for these people in need.

JUDGE ROBERT ECKELS, ASTRODOME COORDINATOR (video clip): It's going to be a strain on the city, but our city is a big city, and we've got big hearts and we'll find a way to deal with the folks as they come in. Moist of the folks in here, again, the dome, the convention center, there's a place for a stopping point, but they're not a place that you want to establish a life for people. It is a place that is not suited well for a long term.

So after a few weeks here, we'll be moving them out.

CALLEBS: Very sad, very sobering information coming from all of these evacuees. Most have no real indication of the significance or how bad this damage fully was because they've been without power, without information, they're only now beginning to find out. There are about 10,000 volunteers doing everything they can. People donating food, their time, money, 170 medical volunteers, even the local beer distributor now is putting out cans of water like this. They expect to put out about $5 million worth a week for the foreseeable future to do everything they can to provide drinking water and food for all of these evacuees. Tony?

HARRIS: Sean Callebs for us in Houston. Sean, thank you.

And for more information on ways can you help tune into CNN tonight at 8:00. An all-star lineup joins Larry King for a special three hour edition of LARRY KING LIVE. How you can help. That's tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, 5:00 p.m. Pacific, right here on CNN.

WHITFIELD: Charity Hospital in New Orleans has now been evacuated. Some of the most vulnerable victims of Hurricane Katrina spent days confined to the facility in what has been described as disgusting conditions. That building, like others, is still surrounded by filthy floodwaters.

But the water is not the only concern for hurricane victims. Many are suffering from dehydration, hunger, exhaustion, stress, scores have not taken need medication in days. Dr. Bill Lloyd is at the University of California-Davis Medical Center in Sacramento and joins us now. Good to see you Dr. Bill.

DR. BILL LLOYD, UC-DAVIS MEDICAL CENTER: Hi, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Hello to you. Many people on medication as I just mentioned, many people on time released medication, and so many of these patients really don't know the proper description of some of the medications they're on, so how do the medical teams try to treat the most fragile of patients like that?

LLOYD: Sure, it starts can w a good basic physical exam and a history and hopefully there will be family members to share the story about what medications they're taking. With this wonderful computer age, if you can just remember the name of one drugstore you've been to, a major leading drugstore, they can get to the computers and get those records.

A lot of people, like you said, have been on time released medications and they may have cut back on pills because they didn't want to run out. It's probably better to take half a dose than no dose at all. But they can substitute with generics and this is not a time to get fussy, for a few weeks, taking a substitute medication will be just as good and won't have any long-term effects.

WHITFIELD: Well, that's interesting. There was one woman who was stranded. She says that she is diabetic, she hasn't taken insulin in days. However, she's afraid now at this point that so much time has elapsed without her insulin that she's afraid when she does take a dose of it, that it might impair her health further.

Is that a legitimate concern?

LLOYD: That's a very important point. But Fredricka, there are 17 million diabetics in this country, and one-third of them don't even know it. They're not taking any treatment whatsoever. So I wouldn't so much worry about a rebound phenomena. It would be very important to get the blood sugar, get the insulin started again or whatever medication she is taking and get her some regular meals. When you're diabetic, you've got to eat to live and you have got to live to eat.

WHITFI8ELD: And let's talk about the medical teams that are on the ground doing an extraordinary job up against some unbelievable obstacles. Granted, they are professionals, they want to do and provide the best care possible. But even when fatigue sets in, for these medical teams, can't that potentially endanger the patients as well?

What are the options?

LLOYD: The options involve treating them directly on the site and you would be surprised in 2005, the quality of care that can be delivered in a campsite. They're going to have 40 of these federal portable health facilities stationed all throughout the Gulf Coast.

At let me tell you. Here in Sacramento, where I'm faculty at UC- Davis, we're part of that national emergency health system, and they're already recruiting doctors here. So you're going to have super qualified specialists from all over the country converging on the Gulf Coast to provide that immediate care, and yes, the machinery to evacuate and the logistics to evacuate people who do have existing health problems or new health problems as a result of the hurricane to get them where they need to be.

Couple of bumpy days getting things started. But right now everything appears to be on the fast track.

WHITFIELD: And Dr. Bill, describe then, in detail, what these portable health facilities are like?

LLOYD: Well, they may be a fixed facility. That is a building, a school or a hospital that is there that they're going to expand out, or they may be portable buildings that have everything that we see in the Middle East with our soldiers in Iraq. That is to say diagnostic laboratories, imaging equipment, and beds and laboratories to help the doctors who are there. All of the doctors will be fully qualified with everything they need, IV solution, medications, sheets, food, that you would need to run a hospital. The only difference is it's going to be much smaller scale and with people who are going to be working much longer hours than they would in their private practice, but they can get everything they need in one of these temporary medical facilities that they can get their own community hospital.

WHITFIELD: All right. Very encouraging. Dr. Bill Lloyd, thanks so much for being with us.

LLOYD: We'll talk again soon.

WHITIFIELD: Tony?

HARRIS: Troops on the ground and people in Downtown New Orleans finally receiving food and water as thousands still wait to be evacuated. We'll get the latest on a security situation in and around New Orleans. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Mission critical. So many people still remain to be rescued almost a week after the arrival of Hurricane Katrina. Here are the latest developments -- in New Orleans, a helicopter dropped meals ready to eat and water to residents still trapped in the flood.

Meanwhile, thousands of people who spend days at Superdome and the Convention Center continue to be evacuated from the city. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says more than 100,000 people displaced by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Coast have received humanitarian aid. The emergency covers an area the size of Great Britain.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is traveling to the region tomorrow.

WHITFIELD: In the wake of all the destruction and chaos in New Orleans, police are putting their own lives at risk to help save the lives of others. The task has been grueling, heart wrenching and dangerous, as we see from CNN's Karl Penhaul.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Time for takeoff as the heat haze rises off the tarmac at New Orleans International Airport.

(on camera): They've asked us to wear bullet proof vests because they've reached the stage in identified survivors, they're firing on military helicopters inside the city. So far, though, today there have been no reports of any incidents.

(voice-over): As we skim over New Orleans, the skies are buzzing, dozens of choppers ferrying out the sick and stranded. We drop onto a university campus in the flood ravaged Eastern Lakefront District. The last men standing here, five officers from the New Orleans Police Department. For five days and nights they secured a landing zone and estimate they help 3,000 men, women and children onto helicopters and away to safety.

SGT. JOEL SYLVE, NEW ORLEANS POLICE: We felt like we was in a war zone. We were in a couple of fights there, and we trying to maintain calm. I mean people losing their mind.

PENHAUL: Armed with assault rifles, pistols and pump-action shotguns, they kept marauders away and tried to keep the peace as hurricane survivors drew more desperate.

SYLVE: There was times I didn't think we was going to get out. And I'm trying not to scare them. Our biggest problem were the men. The men wanted to get out before the women. There's a lot of coward men out there. And that was our problem. We had men running to the chopper and we have to drag them off.

PENHAUL: The scenes were enough to make hard men, even a veteran cop like Sgt. Sylve, crack. Sylve and his exhausted buddies could have called it quits and pulled out days ago. But they'd made a promise to ordinary citizen around them.

DET. PATROLMAN JIMMY WARD, NEW ORLEANS POLICE: We told them, we reassured them that we will still be on the ground when the last person is left out there. We gave them our word on that, we made sure we saw everybody get on the last helicopter or the second to last helicopter getting out there before even we took a step onto our helicopter that brought us out to here. We gave them our word, we kept our word.

PENHAUL: Sergeant Alfred Russell was the last cop to join the team at the university, he had been trapped in his own apartment until the Coast Guard winched him out Thursday.

SGT. ALFRED RUSSEL, NEW ORLEANS POLICE: Anybody who knows anything about that section of the city. That far off, you have lot of reptiles, in particular alligators, snakes, you have all kind of wildlife in that part of the city. So actually rying to swim that far is not an option.

PENHAUL: The helicopter brings the cops back to the airport. After that kind of ordeal, that water must taste almost as good as champagne. These officers are used to seeing the underbelly of life out on the beat but they've never seen it as bad as this.

OFC. PHILLIP EDWINSON, NEW ORLEAS POLICE: I don't know that it's gone completely to hell, but I'd say that it's kind of close.

PENHAUL: An it's a hell etched in their memories.

SYLVE: I got to go to sleep an hour, and that's all I want. And we did it, and those babies, I can still see them in my mind.

PENHAUL: Karl Penhaul, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: With hospitals in New Orleans flooded and without power, many of the sick and elderly are being lifted out of the city by helicopter. Our senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta talked to a flight nurse about the situation and how these people are being attended to.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Dr. Sanjay Gupta at New Orleans airport. As you may know, I was at Charity Hospital for a night following several patients who have ended here up at airport. Lots of reports about what happened to the patients. We have got just the person to talk to about that, Major Frances Schlosser, he's a flight nurse, 43rd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, Pope Air Force Base, Fayetteville, North Carolina. Thank you for joining us.

MAJ FRANCES SCHLOSSER, 43RD AEROMEDICAL EVACUATION SQUADRON: Thank you.

GUPTA: First of all, tell us how it works, you are with a particular division, people come in here to try and take care of the patients. How is it working?

SCHLOSSER: Well, our particular role, we very a very small piece in a great big puzzle that makes all of this happen. We are responding to the needs of all of the patients who come here. When they arrive, they're seen and they're treated by FEMA representatives, civilians, local providers. They're assessed, assigned to a category, and then they're funneled to us.

GUPTA: Who's in charge?

SCHLOSSER: It's a very collaborative effort to make sure that we have a very good understanding of our -- of all of our roles. The FEMA representatives actually are leading the way. They're directing the patients, guiding them to us, and then we have a very definite command element in our air force medical system.

GUPTA: A lot of people have been hearing reports it's chaotic, that in fact, the doctors and healthcare professionals are overworked, overstressed, overburdened. There aren't enough resources. You're here, is that true? SCHLOSSER: Just by the very nature of what we're here for, disaster relief. Yes. It is a very stressful environment. This is something that we're not used to but we are working through it. We work through the chain of command. We're able to funnel information up as quickly as we need to, to get people to the place where they need to be.

GUPTA: Are there enough doctors here?

SCHLOSSER: It's difficult to say because it changes from one minute to the next. What we know is everybody we see is getting the very best possible care that they can. It may not be everything that they need but at least it's a start so we can get them into the system and get them moved into a place where they get more definitive care.

GUPTA: And I ask this next question because I think it's important for a lot of people at home. If you're saying they're getting everything they need, which we're not sure if there are enough doctors here. How can those two things hit you at the same time. And should there be more doctors here?

SCHLOSSER: There should always be more of a medical presence wherever we happen to be. Any time there's a disaster, medical presence is one of the most helpful things that we can provide at any time.

GUPTA: A lot of people are watching at home saying how can I help? How can they help? What can they do specifically? Who should they call? Where should they go? What should they do?

SCHLOSSER: Folks need to stay in touch with their local agencies. The American Red Cross. I know we've given numbers for FEMA, already. Please, stay in contact with the agencies. They can -- they have a very good handle on the resources that we need whether it's personnel, supplies, equipment, they can get those things to the folks who need it.

GUPTA: All right. Well, you're doing good work here, we'll keep an eye on things. Would you mind holding this. One more thing that happens at an airport like this, when patients are moved. A lot of times they have to get on buses and they cannot take some of their most valued personal possession. I want to give you an example what I'm talking about here.

This is a little puppy, Goliath. And just to give a sense, Goliath was actually left stranded tied to a tree, was outside for at least two or three days now. Was actually picked up by this nice gentleman over here, he had nowhere to go. His family had to abandon him because they could not take him on the bus.

This is an example of what is happening here - Goliath, we don't know if that's his real name, but pets are being left behind unfortunately and that is what's happening as well.

We'll keep you posted on what's going on here at New Orleans Airport. Back to you. (END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, trying not to forget any of the members of the family. That's tough. It's tough leaving pets behind.

Returning home to find there is simply nothing left. That's what most folks are discovering. What's it like for those people who have lost everything?

HARRIS: And also, we know you want to know, how can you help. Here's one suggestion. Join Larry King tonight, and his all-star guest list of guests who will be on the program with him. Let's just take a moment and give you an idea of the talent stepping forward to help this effort tonight on CNN. Harry Connick, Jr., the unofficial mayor of New Orleans, by the way, at this point.

WHITFIELD: The native son.

HARRIS: The native son.

WHITFIELD: His dad being the DA there.

HARRIS: That's right, that's right. Terri Hatcher. Bill Cosby, Leann Rimes. Fred you got some names?

WHITFIELD: John Goodman, who is not from New Orleans but he's lived there the last ten years, so he claims that is home for him. Maria Shriver, Magic Johnson, Eric Clapton, you see their images right there. Just some of the names of the celebrities who are going to be on that three hour special tonight.

HARRIS: LARRY KING LIVE tonight, 8:00 p.m. Eastern, 5:00 p.m. Pacific right here on CNN. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: State of emergency. What's it like to be in New Orleans, be in your home, surrounded by waist deep water for six days, and then suddenly out of the sky comes dropping bottles of water and boxes of rations, what we believe to be MREs, meals ready to eat. That's what you're witnessing right now taking place throughout various pockets of New Orleans.

Finally, a lot of relief to people waiting desperately for it. Let's listen in.

J.T. ALPAUGH, PHOTOGRAPHER (voice-over): House on the left? I see what you're saying. I'm blinking on him here. I've got him. Slide back. You're looking good now. Okay, slide left. Okay, here we come. Keep coming left, slide back a little bit. You're okay. I got your tail, you look good. And slide left and try to put it right down. Fifty feet?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Fifty feet. ALPAUGH (voice-over): That's good right, there see that? Okay. Going to try to put it down right behind the truck. Put some more water up the front seat. Here I come. All right? Okay, slide it up a little bit more. Oh, I'm hitting the fence.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One left?

ALPAUGH: Yeah.

WHITFIELD: Again, you're looking at live pictures right now take place in New Orleans. Bottles of water, boxes of food, rations, meals ready to eat to people spotted in some parts waist deep water there in New Orleans, throwing it towards this vehicle because just a moment ago, we did see a man appeared to be a man who was in that water near that truck, and so they're trying to coordinate.

You're hearing the photographer, J.T. Alpaugh, as well as the pilot of this helicopter trying to coordinate, trying to get these bottles of water and this food as close as possible to the people they're spotting down there.

And now you can see under the awning, there is at least one person under there. And I'm sure they're trying to toss these items close enough to that balcony area because you see they're using a broom there. They don't want to get into that putrid water, contaminated water. And we don't know how many people are there. And this scene is playing out over and over and over again throughout New Orleans because there are still apparently hundreds if not thousands of people who are stranded in their homes.

HARRIS: Want to listen in again?

WHITFIELD: Let's.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Let's throw some more in?

ALPAUGH: No, they're in there. Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here's another gentleman walking down the street, J.T.

ALPAUGH: Okay, try to get him water.

WHITFIELD: And we're talking about the challenge here of not only trying to drop these supplies, but it's difficult from this bird's-eye view to see a lot of people who are in their homes, who are on porches that are canopied, it's difficult to spot them but they're trying their best, it seems, to try to reach folks. Not just those walking through the water like that man right there.

ALPAUGH: Slide left, go right over the street.

WHITFIELD: And they got the challenges of the power lines.

HARRIS: Well, Yeah.

WHITFIELD: They can only get so close.

HARRIS: I'm thinking the work this helicopter pilot is doing. I mean, if you take the perspective of the work being done by this pilot. This is an amazing effort that we're watching right now, and you're right, they're power lines all around, and he wants to drop the water. He wants to drop the MREs as close as he can. Look at that. Look at that. Thank you, let's listen in some more.

ALPAUGH: Let's see if he drinks some of that. Hopefully he will. All right, we're continuing to between our live pool feeds, go out, shoot some tape and try to get food out to these people while they wait or continue to wait to be rescued.

We're doing the best we can, we've got a very small helicopter in comparison to the other helicopters in there. Okay, Alan (ph) is doing a great job spotting those on the right side. I'm looking at the left side of the aircraft trying to find anybody we can to get some water to.

We are in an area about three miles north of the downtown area. Can you hear in the background all of the air traffic congestion. Looking for survivors and trying to get some water to them.

One of the cemeteries off to our left here. Go over that way, not seeing anybody in this area, which is good news.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm looking at a sign that says help?

ALPAUGH: Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would assume that they've already been evacuated.

ALPAUGH: That one's out in the street, huh?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to put it on your side so I can watch through about 16 helicopters.

ALPAUGH: Okay. All right, as we bring the helicopter around here, I'm going to look for him.

WHITFIELD: You're looking at a live picture as it was happening, remarkable scene of the helicopter along with the photographer who were trying to come to the aid of people desperately in need, about three miles north of Downtown New Orleans in what appeared to be a mostly residential area dropping bottles of water and boxes of food to the people that they could see.

HARRIS: And Fred, his day started out he's a pool photographer for all of us, so we can get the bird's-eye view, as you mentioned, of what's going on in New Orleans, and he has taken on the additional responsibility of dropping bottles of water to folks who are desperately, obviously, in need, and there you are, people who are very thankful.

It gives you a sense of the need that's on the ground there, and he's trying to navigate this helicopter into some very tight quarters.

WHITFIELD: Absolutely with all those power lines.

HARRIS: With power lines everywhere, Fred. And people who would like to avoid getting into that water. You don't know what's in the water. You have you no idea what's in the water.

WHITFIELD: Right, and you even heard from the photographer who expressed the frustration and difficulty of being able to spot people because presumably it is hot. Some folks may be staying in the covered area because it is so hot, and they don't want to get in the contaminated water.

HARRIS: We're going to take a break. We'll come back to more of our coverage, as the rescue effort continues in New Orleans.

A quick break and we're right back.

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