Gustav gone but evacuees kept out

Louisiana residents are finding it almost as difficult to get back home and it was to evacuate. It will be Thursday before most of the state puts out the welcome mat, but many are trying to return now.

Thousands packed up and pulled out.

Traffic lined the interstates and major highways leading in to New Orleans.

And so did police officers, soldiers, and checkpoints.

Gustav may be gone but for hundreds-of-thousands of evacuees that does not mean it’s time to go home.
This is why:  trees are down, roadways are blocked, debris litters miles of south Louisiana.

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin says “in my humble opinion the city is still in a very, very vulnerable state.“

There is still a dawn to dusk curfew.

Some New Orleans businesses will open on Wednesday and home owners will be allowed back in on Thursday but across the state, close to a million homes are still without power.

And near the coast, water is still creeping into homes.

Recovery teams are assessing the damage and identifying stranded survivors.

Thousands still in shelters feel like they are on an island as well.

And for those in the hardest hit areas in the south, it could be next week before residents are allowed back in their homes.