Bush Pledges Help For Victims

(CBS/AP)  President Bush pledged extensive assistance for victims of Hurricane Katrina on Monday and urged those in areas affected to remain safe until the danger "from this devastating storm" passed. The government put into effect a massive emergency assistance program that included rushing baby formula, communications equipment, generators, water and ice into hard-hit areas.

"When the storm passes, the federal government has got assets and resources that we'll be deploying to help you. In the meantime, America will pray — pray for the health and safety of all our citizens," Mr. Bush said in remarks directed at storm victims. He made the comments during a previously scheduled speech on Medicare at an RV resort here.

"Our Gulf Coast is getting hit and hit hard," Mr. Bush said. "I urge the citizens there in the region to continue to listen to the local authorities. Don't abandon your shelters until you're given clearance by the local authorities. Take precautions because this is a dangerous storm."

Mr. Bush also was considering releasing oil from petroleum reserves to help refiners, administration officials said.

As the storm surged ashore just east of New Orleans on Monday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency had medical teams, rescue squads and groups prepared to supply food and water poised in a semicircle around the city.

"I was impressed with the evacuation. Once it was ordered it was very smooth," FEMA Director Michael Brown said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. With the storm moving north, Brown said he expected to see flooding in Tennessee and the Ohio Valley.

Brown also told CBS News' The Early Show that the government is preparing supplies and response teams to move wherever Gulf state inhabitants need them once the weather allows.

"The men and women here are ready to respond anywhere and everywhere," Brown told Harry Smith. "As President Bush outlined the logistics and everything we were doing, he made the note he was very impressed with what we're doing. We're ready to respond to everything the governors might need."

Efforts include:

The American Red Cross is mobilizing volunteers from across the country for what one official called its largest response to a single disaster in many years. "This is really an all-hands-on-deck scenario for the Red Cross right now," spokeswoman Carrie Martin said.

As the Category 4 the storm surged ashore just east of New Orleans on Monday, FEMA had medical teams, rescue squads and groups prepared to supply food and water poised in a semicircle around the city, said Brown.

The Agriculture Department has meals and baby formula ready. The Defense Department has communications equipment and medical teams. And, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has water and ice set to deliver to victims of Hurricane Katrina.

The EPA dispatched emergency crews to Louisiana and Texas, because of concern about oil and chemical spills. The agency has set up facilities for checking on the damage, but won't be able to quickly assess the region's needs until it can safely send more people into the field.

The Coast Guard closed ports and waterways along the Gulf Coast and evacuated its own personnel and equipment.

The Defense Department dispatched emergency coordinators to Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi to provide a wide range of assistance including communications equipment, search and rescue operations, medical teams and other emergency supplies.

The First U.S. Army, based at Fort Gillem near Atlanta, has 1,600 National Guard troops that were there training to go to Iraq, and they will be available to assist the states or evacuate Camp Shelby in Mississippi, if necessary.

Late Sunday, President Bush pressed for an emergency declaration in Alabama, which would allow federal operations in. Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi were already declared disaster states, CBS News correspondent Mark Knoller reports.

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