New Orleans Ordered Evacuated as Storm Enters Gulf of Mexico

Evacuations were in high gear Sunday as Hurricane Gustav bore down on the U.S. Gulf Coast, threatening to cut a devastating swathe across the Gulf of Mexico's oil and gas infrastructure and to flood at least parts of New Orleans just days after the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

Gustav's untimely arrival also disrupted plans for the Republican National Convention, scheduled to begin Monday in Minnesota. President Bush and Vice President Cheney both canceled appearances scheduled for Monday due to the hurricane, as convention planners scrambled to cope with political and practical implications of the mammoth storm.

Republican candidate John McCain traveled to a hurricane command center in Jackson, Miss. Sunday morning, along with his new running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, to get briefed on storm preparations. Meanwhile, his top aides considered curtailing parts of the four-day convention.

Chastened after a sluggish response to Hurricane Katrina, Bush administration officials scrambled to assure the public that they were prepared. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff headed to the region Sunday and said he planned to stay through the storm.