Tropical Storm Lee dumped more than a foot of rain in New Orleans and spun off tornadoes elsewhere as its centre came ashore in a slow crawl north that raised fears of inland flash flooding in America’s Deep South and beyond.

A nine-year-old US boy has crashed a car while trying to drive it to school.

US federal emergency officials are directing hurricane-aid supplies to areas where hey aren’t needed, according to an Air Force official, causing delays that have left international aid shipments for Hurricane Katrina victims sitting at an Air Force base in Arkansas.