Conditions are horrible.

Desperate for fresh air, dozens of refugees from Hurricane Katrina slept on the walkway surrounding the Louisiana Superdome as conditions inside worsened and even more people were brought to the huge arena Tuesday.

National Guardsmen let some of the 10,000 people sheltering inside the arena take their bedding out onto the concourse, where it was cooler and the breeze was welcome.

“Oh God, fresh air, it’s so wonderful. It’s the first time I’ve wanted to breathe all day,” said Robin Smith, 33. “When you think what we could’ve gone through, it’s not too bad in there. But it’s certainly not as wonderful as this.”

The bathrooms were filthy and barrels overflowed with trash. With the air conditioning off since power went out Monday morning, the bricks were slick with condensation.

Two people have died inside the stadium. Also hearing (unconfirmed) that one man has reportedly jumped to his death from an upper floor. (Update: News article on that possible suicide.) Some evacuees want out:

“We’re doing everything we can to keep these people comfortable,” Gen. Ralph Lupin, commander of the National Guard troops at the Superdome, said Tuesday morning. “We’re doing our best. It’s not getting any better but we’re trying not to let it get any worse.”

“I know people want to leave, but they can’t leave,” he said. “There’s 3 feet of water around the Superdome.”

The situation was especially difficult for those in wheelchairs, who were lined up in rows five deep along a wall. One patient’s IV bag was attached to a stadium seating sign.

Officials were considering moving the patients to areas with better accommodations.

Not Superdome-related, but this is a heart-breaking story.

This is, too.

(Hat tip: Allahpundit)

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Answering Hugh Hewitt’s call for a blogger relief day, Glenn Reynolds suggests Thursday. Mark your calendars.

Also bookmark Chuck Simmins’ page. He did a fabulous job tracking aid/relief efforts during the Aceh disaster, and tells me he will soon be up and running with a Katrina project. He adds that Walmart and Office Depot have each donated $1 million for relief. RedState points to relief links. As noted earlier, the KatrinaHelp Wiki has good resources.

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Update, 5:00pm EDT:

WWLTV: “With conditions in the hurricane-ravaged city of New Orleans rapidly deteriorating, Gov. Kathleen Blanco said Tuesday that people now huddled in the Superdome and other rescue centers need to be evacuated.”

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Hurricane Katrina: Relief efforts

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