WASHINGTON - Hurricane Katrina will have a greater economic impact than previous killer storms, though the energy price spikes, slower growth and job losses will not be enough to push the country into a recession.

Hurricane Katrina disrupted Gulf Coast petroleum output and rattled energy markets on Monday, sending crude-oil and natural-gas futures soaring and setting the stage for a spike in retail gasoline prices.

After days of fearing that they’d been abandoned to die, hundreds of victims of Hurricane Katrina were brought to Phoenix and greeted with smiles and hugs as emergency aid workers welcomed them to their new shelter: Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

WASHINGTON - Facing sharp criticism, President Bush toured the hurricane-battered Gulf Coast on Friday and vowed the government will restore order in lawless New Orleans.

View a slideshow of photographs taken by Tribune intern photographer Sarah Regnier, who visited the Houston Astrodome shortly after Hurricane Katrina.

After days of fearing that they’d been abandoned to die, hundreds of victims of Hurricane Katrina were brought to Phoenix and greeted with smiles and hugs as emergency aid workers welcomed them to their new shelter: Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Parents might cringe at the thought of their child ending up on an MTV program, especially during spring break. But a 16-member group of Valley kids that departed Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on Saturday morning for spring break could be featured on an upcoming MTV episode for a positive reason.

Although there will be more important and valuable casualties in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Arizona State’s football game at Louisiana State in less than two weeks has not yet been affected.

Although there will be more important and valuable casualties in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Arizona State’s football game at Louisiana State in less than two weeks has not yet been affected.

When Chicago trumpeter Maurice Brown moved to Louisiana four years ago, he dreamed of becoming a star in the mythic birthplace of jazz: New Orleans.

Published August 2006 in the Tribune newspapers

The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina demands a commission to answer this question: How did an event that had long been predicted and presumably prepared for turn into the New Orleans catastrophe?

Travelers Cos. Inc. says it will pay at least $1 billion in insurance claims and suffer a second-quarter operating loss from tornadoes and hailstorms that pummeled 13 midwestern and southern states in April and May.

NEW ORLEANS - In the dark of dawn 65 miles south of this shattered city, several hundred people bowed their heads in silence, marking the moment a year ago when the eye of Hurricane Katrina passed overhead at 6:10 a.m.

Valley residents may not get much use out of umbrellas, but local students have discovered they can be used to help victims of Hurricane Katrina.

When thousands of families displaced by Hurricane Katrina eventually return home, they’ll start the process of assessing the damage to houses, cars and businesses and figuring out how to pay for putting their lives back together.