CAIR urged mosques and Islamic centers to gather aid for victims. (Reuters)

NEW ORLEANS, September 1, 2005 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – A leading US Muslim advocacy group urged American Muslims to offer assistance to alleviate the suffering of people impacted by the devastating Hurricane Katrina as rescuers battled Thursday, September 1, to stop looters taking control of the stricken city of New Orleans.

"We also offer condolences to the loved ones of those who died as a result of the hurricane's impact and urge everyone to contribute whatever they can, in both financial and human resources, to help alleviate the ongoing suffering," the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said in a statement e-mailed to IslamOnline.net.

The advocacy group also urged mosques and Islamic centers throughout the country to hold special blood drives, prayers and fundraising efforts for disaster relief.

"We join (Louisiana Governor Kathleen) Blanco in urging Americans of all faiths to pray for the victims of this unprecedented national disaster."

Massive rescue operations were already underway to search for survivors of the killer storm Katrina, which hit the US Gulf South Monday, August 29.

Authorities have already drafted plans to evacuate thousands of residents remaining in New Orleans, including some 20,000 sheltering in its crowded Superdome stadium.

More than 78,000 people were in emergency shelters and tens, waiting for evacuation.

"We are dealing with one of the worst natural disasters in our nation's history," Bush said after returning early to the White House from his Texas vacation to oversee recovery efforts, according to Reuters.

Bush cut short his nearly five-week vacation in Texas Wednesday to coordinate efforts to respond to the hurricane.

Katrina is believed to have killed at least hundreds of people in Louisiana and Mississippi when it struck the Gulf Coast with 140-mph (225 kph) winds and a 30-foot (9-meter) wall of water that inundated a wide swath of coastline, trapping people in attics or on rooftops.

UN emergency relief coordinator Jan Egeland, who oversaw the Asian tsunami relief effort, said Katrina could easily dwarf the devastation of other recent natural disasters in terms of economic costs.

Egeland called Katrina one of "the largest, most destructive natural disasters ever" and offered UN assistance, Reuters said.

Looting added to the gravity of the historic devastation. (Reuters)

Looting and chaos in New Orleans added to the gravity of the tragic situation.

Many food and convenience stores in New Orleans had their doors or windows smashed. Some looters were seen calmly carrying contents out of stores, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

The extent of the looting spread fear in the city famous for its jazz and easygoing lifestyle.

Cheryl Richou, from St. Charles Parish, a rural area west of New Orleans, told AFP "Everybody's scared they'll start coming to St. Charles," in a reference to looters.

Several television networks reported that New Orleans was pulling 1,500 police from the search-and-rescue mission to deal with looting and lawlessness in the streets.

A fleet of prison buses arrived at the storm-battered Superdome stadium to take 23,000 refugees to the Houston Astrodome 350 miles (550 kms) away.

Stranded people were running out of food and water and growing desperate. Some pushed shopping carts filled with their belongings along freeways, with one cart holding a young girl who had passed out. Others asked for food and water.

"It's a lot of chaos right now," Louisiana state police Director H.L. Whitehorn said.

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin estimated it would be 12 to 16 weeks before residents could return. A million people fled the New Orleans area before Katrina arrived. But former Mayor Sidney Barthelemy estimated 80,000 were trapped in the city.

Blanco earlier said lawlessness had driven her to desperation.

"We beg the people to get out," Blanco told a news conference called to urge remaining people in New Orleans to leave the city.

"What angers me the most is that in these situations, you usually see the best from people. But here we saw also the worse. We're going to enforce law and order."

In a sign of how devastating the crisis is, Bush said it would take years to recover from the disaster.