US President Barack Obama visited Louisiana for a first-hand look at the damage from Hurricane Isaac, seeking to show his administration was on top of the relief effort on the eve of his Democrats' national convention in North Carolina.
A 20-year-old African American woman has been set on fire with the letters KKK written on her car. Louisiana authorities are now investigating the possibility of a hate crime.
Rick Santorum cruised to victory in the Louisiana Republican presidential primary but still trails Mitt Romney by a wide margin in the national delegate count for the party nomination.
Torrential rain dropped by Hurricane Isaac threatened to burst a dam, forcing evacuation of up to 60,000 people in Louisiana and Mississippi and leaving large areas of the region flooded and without power.
Tornadoes and storms lashed the US South, leading to 25 deaths in Alabama alone over a 24 hour period, state authorities said.
The US Army Corps of Engineers were to open the Morganza Spillway at 3PM CDT to ease pressure on the swollen Mississippi River, a spokesman said.
Slow-moving Tropical Storm Lee strengthened as it lumbered toward the Louisiana coast today, bringing torrential rains that will put the flood defenses of low-lying New Orleans to the test.