February 11, 2009 7:11 PM
- Text
Mississippi Hurting
(CBS/AP)
As the death toll from Hurricane Katrina reached at least 110 in Mississippi, a county coroner in the state said search and rescue teams have only been able to get into about half of the areas virtually destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
Gary Hargrove said it "may be several days or even weeks" before teams can get into some areas of coastal Mississippi. He also noted that buildings that survived Hurricane Camille in 1969, were "pancaked" by Katrina.
Hargrove, who experienced Camille, says "this storm was worse than Camille."
An estimated 100 people are dead in Biloxi. Officials have confirmed ten other deaths in two small communities in Jackson County.
For those who have survived, conditions are getting worse. CBS News Correspondent Jim Acosta reports that in Biloxi, some of the desperate turned to looting. At stores cracked open by Katrina, it was a free for all and when security arrived, there were accusations the police are the scavengers.
"This is all the water we have left, that's it, and they're in there helping themselves, and we're sitting out here starving," said Chris Wilson.
Meanwhile, police and firefighters have worked around the clock, looking for survivors.
"We're in that critical time that people can be rescued," Chief Pat Sullivan said on CBS News' The Early Show. "If we don't get out there and do it now, then they're going to die."
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's Deputy Director Patrick Rhode told CBS News Correspondent Peter Maer the current mission in the region centers on lifesaving, as crews continue the search for survivors. He called it a "very aggressive search and rescue effort" and warned "the storm is just as dangerous after the storm as it was during" the disaster. He cautioned that people should not even think about returning to their homes.
A helicopter view of the devastation over Mississippi revealed people standing on black rooftops, baking in the sunshine while waiting for rescue boats.
"I can only imagine that this is what Hiroshima looked like 60 years ago," said Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour after touring the destruction by air Tuesday.
CBS News Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith reports from Bay St. Louis, Mississippi that many families have been left homeless. Keith and Josette Landries' home was destroyed in the storm and they are keeping everything they have left in shopping carts.
They're wandering the city's streets looking for a place to say – they said the shelter they were in was just too dangerous, Smith reports.
One Mississippi county alone said it had suffered at least 100 deaths, and officials are "very, very worried that this is going to go a lot higher," said Joe Spraggins, civil defense director for Harrison County, home to Biloxi and Gulfport. In neighboring Jackson County, officials said at least 10 deaths were blamed on the storm.
Several of the dead in Harrison County were from a beachfront apartment building that collapsed under a 25-foot wall of water as Hurricane Katrina slammed the Gulf Coast with 145-mph winds Monday. Louisiana officials said many were feared dead there, too, making Katrina one of the most punishing storms to hit the United States in decades.
Gary Hargrove said it "may be several days or even weeks" before teams can get into some areas of coastal Mississippi. He also noted that buildings that survived Hurricane Camille in 1969, were "pancaked" by Katrina.
Hargrove, who experienced Camille, says "this storm was worse than Camille."
An estimated 100 people are dead in Biloxi. Officials have confirmed ten other deaths in two small communities in Jackson County.
For those who have survived, conditions are getting worse. CBS News Correspondent Jim Acosta reports that in Biloxi, some of the desperate turned to looting. At stores cracked open by Katrina, it was a free for all and when security arrived, there were accusations the police are the scavengers.
"This is all the water we have left, that's it, and they're in there helping themselves, and we're sitting out here starving," said Chris Wilson.
Meanwhile, police and firefighters have worked around the clock, looking for survivors.
"We're in that critical time that people can be rescued," Chief Pat Sullivan said on CBS News' The Early Show. "If we don't get out there and do it now, then they're going to die."
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's Deputy Director Patrick Rhode told CBS News Correspondent Peter Maer the current mission in the region centers on lifesaving, as crews continue the search for survivors. He called it a "very aggressive search and rescue effort" and warned "the storm is just as dangerous after the storm as it was during" the disaster. He cautioned that people should not even think about returning to their homes.
A helicopter view of the devastation over Mississippi revealed people standing on black rooftops, baking in the sunshine while waiting for rescue boats.
"I can only imagine that this is what Hiroshima looked like 60 years ago," said Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour after touring the destruction by air Tuesday.
CBS News Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith reports from Bay St. Louis, Mississippi that many families have been left homeless. Keith and Josette Landries' home was destroyed in the storm and they are keeping everything they have left in shopping carts.
They're wandering the city's streets looking for a place to say – they said the shelter they were in was just too dangerous, Smith reports.
One Mississippi county alone said it had suffered at least 100 deaths, and officials are "very, very worried that this is going to go a lot higher," said Joe Spraggins, civil defense director for Harrison County, home to Biloxi and Gulfport. In neighboring Jackson County, officials said at least 10 deaths were blamed on the storm.
Several of the dead in Harrison County were from a beachfront apartment building that collapsed under a 25-foot wall of water as Hurricane Katrina slammed the Gulf Coast with 145-mph winds Monday. Louisiana officials said many were feared dead there, too, making Katrina one of the most punishing storms to hit the United States in decades.
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