Ferrying animals out of flooded areas might seem frivolous as efforts continue to roust the last reluctant humans from their homes.But across devastated New Orleans, people cited concern for their four-legged companions as their reason to stay behind. People like the woman who one Navy officer said tried to take her elderly cat with her on a helicopter flight out of the city, or the evacuee who filled his luggage with medication for his two dogs.‘‘We’re trying to get the word out that LASPCA will house the animals,’’ said Renee Bafalis, a spokeswoman for the US Humane Society, which is helping coordinate the effort.Using a list compiled as evacuated pet owners or their concerned neighbours called in, the volunteers have been working their way through New Orleans, prying open French doors to corral cats, paddling up in inflatable rafts to retrieve stranded dogs.Once caught, the animals are herded into their own version of the Houston Astrodome: a repurposed rodeo venue in nearby Gonzales. More than 1,300 animals are housed here, Bafalis said. Owners have 15 days to claim the animals, then they go up for adoption. —Newsday Katrina’s victims far fewer than first fearedNEW ORLEANS: The dead of New Orleans, uncounted and uncollected while the ruined city fought to save Hurricane Katrina’s survivors, were the top concern on Saturday amid hope that their numbers may be fewer than once feared.New Orleans officials said the rescue of the stranded and the helpless had ended and efforts were now turned entirely to finding bodies. Until that is completed, they said, there was no hurry to oust those who have refused to quit the city despite an evacuation order.More than 300 deaths have been confirmed in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, though much higher totals have been feared. ‘‘There’s some encouragement in the initial sweeps .. The numbers (of dead) so far are relatively minor,’’ said Col. Terry Ebbert, director of Homeland Security for New Orleans. “What we are starting today . is a recovery operation, a recovery operation to search by street, by grid, for the remains of any individuals who have passed away.” REUTERS
