Plan will get people ‘back on their feet’

AS Congress hurried toward approval of a $51.8 billion (€41.77bn) emergency hurricane aid package, US President George Bush yesterday mapped a plan to get a wide range of government benefits - from medical care to job training - to storm victims who have been scattered around the US.

Mr Bush, under fire for the government’s response to the devastation so far, was to announce initiatives aimed at helping people “get back on their feet” in an address from the White House, spokesman Scott McClellan said.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), stung by criticism it failed to act fast enough when Katrina hit, was preparing to hand out $2,000 debit cards for each household affected by the storm. At the Houston Astrodome, where many New Orleans evacuees are being housed, long lines formed to register.