New Florida storm aid announced

Many homes were badly damaged by high winds from Jeanne

US President George W Bush has asked Congress for $7.1bn for disaster relief in Florida and other southern states hit by recent heavy storms.

If approved, the package will increase to $12.2bn the amount of aid allocated during the current hurricane season.

Florida is clearing up after Hurricane Jeanne struck at the weekend, killing six people and cutting power supplies.

On Thursday, President Bush and Democratic challenger John Kerry will hold a televised debate in the state.

Florida was at the centre of the disputed presidential election in 2000 and is a hotly-contested state for the 2 November poll.

It was all a deplorable hoax, I believe, trying to terrorise the viewing public, when, in fact, nothing had happened Jaime, Fort Lauderdale Jeanne: Your experiences Back-to-back hurricanes

Thursday's debate, the first of three presidential debates in the run-up to the election, will focus on foreign policy and national security.

The latest opinion poll puts Mr Bush seven percentage points ahead of the Massachusetts senator.

A Washington Post/ABC News poll published Tuesday gave Mr Bush 51%, against 44% for Mr Kerry.

In Florida, two million people were left without electricity after Hurricane Jeanne hit on Saturday night - the fourth hurricane to batter the state in six weeks.

Map of Hurricane Jeanne's projected path

It had earlier caused devastation in Haiti, where more than 1,500 were killed in flooding and landslides.

The storm has weakened as it heads north-east towards North and South Carolina.

However, there is still two months of the hurricane season left.

'Everyone affected'

Jeanne came ashore near Stuart, Fort Pierce and Vero Beach on Florida's east coast - the same region battered by Hurricane Frances three weeks ago.

Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the president's brother, said the hardest-hit areas were Martin, Indian River and St Lucie counties.

However, the governor added that "just about everybody's been impacted by the storm in one way or the other".

It is too early to assess the damage, but the cumulative effect of Florida's four hurricanes will be immense, correspondents say.

Insurance claims were already expected to reach $25bn.

Early this month President Bush signed into law a $2bn relief package to help Florida following Hurricane Charley.

A further $3.1bn allocated for relief efforts after Hurricane Frances still awaits congressional approval.

The latest package, announced on Monday, will also benefit other states like Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi, which bore the brunt of Hurricane Ivan in mid-September.

The hurricanes have so far caused at least 70 deaths in Florida.

No other state has been hit by four hurricanes in the same season since Texas more than a century ago.

Click to return