New Orleans mayor halts city’s reopening

A few gas stations and convenience stores were open, but little else. Grady Shavers, the manager of the local Winn-Dixie supermarket, said he had hoped to be open by Monday, but it took longer than he anticipated to clear out the spoiled food and other debris.

“We're now shooting for Thursday,” Shavers said. “Salvage crews already took everything out of the store. That was a nasty job.”

Tropical Storm Rita causing concern
Bush said there is “deep concern” about the possibility that Tropical Storm Rita, which was headed toward the Florida Keys on Monday, could drop more rain on New Orleans and breach the city's levees again.

Before Nagin's change of policy, Allen, head of the federal government's hurricane response, warned over the weekend — and again on Monday morning — that city services may not be able to handle the influx of people.

He cited a lack of drinkable water and 911 service, and expressed concern that another storm could cause the patchwork repairs to New Orleans’ levees to fail and bring more flooding.

“Our concern is when you have the general population returning in large numbers without the proper infrastructure to support them,” he said on NBC’s “Today” show.

“Everybody wants the city of New Orleans to be restarted,” Allen said Monday on CBS’s “The Early Show.” “The mayor has a vision. We agree with that vision. The discussion we’re having with the mayor is over the timing of re-entry and how to do it safely.”

Asked when it would be safe for people to return, he said, “We know potable water will probably be restored soon and the levees will be fixed, so that may mean days, weeks.”

Hospital crisis
The vice president of the national hospital accreditation organization also cautioned against reopening parts of the city, saying several hospitals probably were damaged beyond repair, while others may try to rush back into business before conditions are safe.

“Essentially the health care infrastructure of New Orleans is gone — it no longer exists,” said Joe Cappiello, who had just completed a three-day mission to the city for the Illinois-based Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.

Although the city has more than a dozen hospitals, none has resumed normal operations. Officials at Children’s Hospital, which Nagin had hoped would be ready in time for the planned return of residents to the Uptown neighborhood, said they may need 10 more days to prepare.

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