Their next stop was Slidell, northeast of New Orleans, which also faced hurricane winds of 140-160 miles per hour. A checkpoint on I-12 blocked traffic into Slidell, but officers allowed the relief supplies in.

Broken trees lay everywhere — tall, loblolly pine snapped half way up and stately, ancient live oak and pin oak, whose strength kept them intact, only to be betrayed by their shallow root systems. Snapped power poles lay shattered in the streets, connected by a spaghetti of cable. With all the power and telephones out, danger from the powerlines was minimal.

Lillie sent Long to Mississippi, where reports had been received of trees strewn across the countryside. Because of looters, the Mississippi Highway Patrol sealed the borders and it wasn't known if Long made it through.

Regardless, said Lillie, trucks from Orlando, Fla., and Atlanta, Ga., will be headed their way today with more supplies and equipment.

He said the truck from Dallas they followed unloaded at a storehouse in Slidell. Then, reloaded with commodities, it returned to each site.

Meanwhile, the disaster was reaching new crisis points in other areas.

Even as leaders of Louisiana's Jefferson Parish pleaded on the radio for supplies, begging for food for refugees, medical aid and help from law enforcement, I-10 at dusk was a miles-long caravan of yellow blinking lights as service vehicles from other states filled both lanes. Some carried heavy equipment, some tree equipment, some components of one kind or another.

They rumbled forward, people intent on helping however they could.