146 more evacuees here

In addition to people, pets also began arriving on flights early Sunday, including a small dog wrapped like a baby with a pacifier in its mouth, perhaps in fear it would not be allowed on board, and a large Rottweiler.

A kennel was even set up Sunday at Camp Williams to accommodate the animals, Utah Air National Guard Col. David Thomas said.

Most of the evacuees who have arrived in Utah are thankful to be away from the chaos of New Orleans, according to reports of those working on the ground here. But some, when given the choice of getting on a plane to Utah or staying in New Orleans, chose to stay. Utah Air National Guard Col. David Thomas said 13 people who were supposed to be on Saturday night's flight got off the plane when they learned they were headed to the Beehive State.

For that reason, the evacuees don't even know where they are going until the plane lands. Thomas said relief workers are doing their best just to get the displaced residents into better conditions, wherever that may be.

"They're trying to take them out of New Orleans to anywhere they can get them to. They're not in the travel business," he said.

Many Louisiana residents, however, have had positive things to say about Utah.

"Some people have been so impressed with the area and the reception they got here, that they said, 'You know, I just might stay here. We've got nothing to go back to,' " Thomas said.

With the most populated areas already evacuated, such as the Superdome and the conference center, many of the arrivals Sunday came from outlying areas that didn't bear the brunt of the hurricane. A few said they hoped to leave almost immediately and plan to rent vehicles to meet up with friends and family in other states.

Those expected to arrive in Utah throughout the week will largely arrive on commercial airplanes run by carrier JetBlue. The Utah Air National Guard's military airlift is suspended indefinitely, after three KC-135s sent to New Orleans Sunday returned empty.

The first plane arrived at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport shortly before noon.

"We were told they had had so much military and commercial traffic that they didn't have any more people right then to pick up," said Lt. Col. Kurt Davis of the Utah Air National Guard. "So they asked them to just turn around and come back."

The plane's crew then called the other two Utah Air National Guard jets and told them to turn around as well, he said.

Fifteen soldiers from the Utah National Guard's 19th Special Forces Group, First Battalion, are currently in New Orleans to assist in the search and rescue effort.

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Contributing: Leigh Dethman

E-mail: awelling@desnews.com, preavy@desnews.com