Thousands stranded in US floods

A family waits to be rescued from their driveway

Thousands of people have been forced from their homes in Texas and Louisiana, as torrential rains continue to batter the southern coast of the United States.

President George Bush has declared 28 counties of south-east Texas a disaster area, ordering federal aid to supplement local efforts.

There are more people out there on rooftops than we can possibly even count, much less help

Rob Wyman, Coast Guard spokesman

At least three people have been killed in the floods caused by tropical storm Allison, one of them a woman who drowned in a flooded lift in a building in the Texan city of Houston.

Emergency officials in the city used boats and helicopters to rescue thousands of residents trapped by rising waters.

Visiting alligator

"There are more people out there on rooftops than we can possibly even count, much less help," said a Coast Guard spokesman, Rob Wyman.

The first floor is completely under water

Nine of the city's major hospitals have declared internal emergencies, many of them affected by power failures.

All the main roads into Houston were flooded to some degree, and many drivers were stranded as their cars either sank or floated in the flood waters.

Some were rescued by long-haul truck drivers.

In Louisiana, alligators agitated by the storm's thunder and lightening, wandered into residential areas.

Officials in two parishes reported capturing 40 alligators during the week.

I'll release them back into the swamps unless they are big and aggressive," said Richard Roussel IV, an alligator nuisance control officer for St John Parish.

Forecasters are predicting more rain for Sunday.