Bush sees post-Katrina progress

President Bush has made several visits to the region since the disaster

President George W Bush has said "hope is coming back" to New Orleans three years on from the destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina.

Mr Bush, speaking during a visit to the city, said recovery was being boosted by $126bn (£67.5bn) in aid given to the US Gulf coast region.

But he acknowledged that much work remained to be done.

Katrina struck on 29 August 2005, leaving some 1,800 people dead in Louisiana and Mississippi.

Much of New Orleans was flooded after levees broke under the pressure of the storm.

Katrina was one of the costliest hurricanes in US history, causing hundreds of billions of dollars in damage.

'Brighter day'

The loss of life and property in the wake of Katrina stunned the US

"Who would have thought three years after the storm the president could come and say, 'New Orleans, Louisiana, is on its way back as a stronger and better city'," President Bush said during his visit on Wednesday.

"I think the message here today is hope is being restored. Hope is coming back," he said.

"There are people hurting. I fully understand that; people waiting to get back in their home, wondering whether a brighter day is possible. Yet a brighter day is coming."

Mr Bush's visit, nine days before the actual anniversary, was his 11th to the region since Katrina, a strong category three hurricane with winds of 140mph (225km/h), battered coastal regions.

The political legacy of the hurricane still lingers. The Bush administration's slow response to the unfolding catastrophe provoked huge criticism, especially from African-Americans who argued that race was a factor in the slowness of rescue and recovery operations.

Critics also say the federal government is still failing to deliver sufficient help.