'Recovery will take years'

WASHINGTON — President Bush pledged Wednesday to do "all in our power" to save lives and provide sustenance to uncounted victims of Hurricane Katrina but cautioned that recovery of the Gulf Coast will take years.

"We're dealing with one of the worst natural disasters in our nation's history," he said at the White House after breaking off his Texas vacation and viewing the devastation from Air Force One.

With a vast federal relief effort grinding into operation — from food and shelter to spraying for disease-carrying mosquitoes — Bush cautioned that the effects of the storm will be felt far beyond Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.

He said he had ordered steps to cushion the impact on the storm on the nation's oil industry at a time when consumers are paying $3 a gallon for gasoline in some regions. "This will help take some pressure off of gas price, but our citizens must understand this storm has disrupted the capacity to make gasoline and distribute gasoline," he said.

Flanked by senior members of his administration, Bush recited some of the actions already taken to help victims of the storm — more than 50 disaster medical assistance teams and more than 25 urban search and rescue teams, both from the Federal Emergency Management Administration.

He said the Transportation Department has provided trucks to convey 5.4 million ready-to-eat meals, 13.4 million liters of water, 10,400 tarps, 3.4 million pounds of ice, 144 generators, 20 containers of prepositioned disaster supplies, 135,000 blankets and 11,000 cots.

"And we're just starting," he added.

While Bush offered no immediate estimate for the cost of the federal effort, administration spokesman Dana Perino said a funding request would be prepared quickly. Congressional leaders in both parties said they were eager to respond to a disaster whose full scope was still unclear.

Standing in the Rose Garden, Bush said, "This recovery will take a long time. This recovery will take years."

He said buses were on the way to help take thousands of storm survivors from the overwhelmed Superdome in New Orleans to the Astrodome in Houston.

Bush said the Pentagon, as well, was contributing to the rescue and relief operations, and the administration would make road and bridge repair a priority.

Bush also said he had instructed Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman to work with refineries to "alleviate any shortage through loans."

In addition to the government's efforts, Bush encouraged private cash donations to recovery efforts.