The Pentagon has sent more than 30,000 National Guard troops to support Katrina relief and public order work in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. Part of their work involves rescuing people still stranded on roofs and carrying out the sickest people from public hospitals inside the city.
One helicopter lands at the New Orleans airport, bringing survivors of hurricane Katrina to saftey. And immediately another takes off to continue search and rescue operations. No one knows how many people are still stranded by the floodwaters. Leon Salphan was rescued Friday.
"I was rescued from the roof of my house in Eastern New Orleans by helicoper," said Leon Salphan. "I put up an SOS sign, a help sign. I was ready to go."
Now he waits with thousands of other people to be taken to a more permanent shelter. Where they will go, and when they will leave, nobody knows. The airport is also now a temporary medical center for patients evacuated from hospitals. Jules Knight with the New Orleans Methodist Hospital says he left many patients waiting on the hospital roof.
"There are still people there that need to get off," said Jules Knight. "On top of the roof,there are sick people that we carried up."
Many of the evacuees are frustrated with the pace of the rescue operation. But the commander of this emergency medical center - H. James Young, says they have been working day and night since the hurricane hit.
"This is a time thing," said H. James Young. "It's not a quick fix. It's progressing."
