New Orleans celebrates revitalized Superdome

New Orleans, Sept 26: The Louisiana Superdome, a scene of misery, frustration and death in the days after Hurricane Katrina, came back to life as the New Orleans Saints took the field for what turned out to be much more than a football game.

''You think of the people who died here but I truly feel this represents the spirit of New Orleans people,'' said Saints fan Sue Nelson yesterday who traveled from Luling, Louisiana, for the game.

''This brings dollars into the city and that's how you have to start bringing the city back.'' Eight hours before the Saints were to meet the Atlanta Falcons on the field in a National Football League game, local fans already were cooking and enjoying cold beer outside the Superdome. The stadium looked brand-new after a multi-million-dollar face-lift that included a new roof, new artificial turf, new concession stands and animated scoreboards.

The pre-game ceremony featured the rock bands U2 and Green Day and by game time, the 68,000 people who packed the stadium were in the highest spirits seen in the Crescent City since Katrina flooded 80 per cent of New Orleans in August 2005. The flood forced thousands of residents to flee with nothing but the clothes on their backs and killed 1,400 people.

Less than half the city's 450,000 pre-Katrina residents have returned.

The roaring crowd of happy football fans was a far cry from the 30,000 people who had come to the Superdome a year before because they were unable to evacuate as Katrina approached. The stadium was damaged by the storm and the steamy, dark unsanitary conditions provided a poor refuge as it became a symbol of an emergency response that was unable to protect the city or rescue its poorest residents.

BIG DAY FOR TEAM, CITY

The team's first appearance in the Superdome since December 2004 carried special meaning for everyone in hurricane-ravaged New Orleans. Last year, the Saints had to play their games in San Antonio and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

''It's a big day for the Saints and the city,'' said Chris Gordy, a Louisiana State University student partying in a parking lot with a half-dozen friends before noon a few blocks from the Superdome. ''Rebuilding the Superdome shows the city can support the team.'' Gordy and his friends purchased season tickets for the Saints' return to New Orleans, the only way to get into yesterday night's sold-out game.

''If you look there are people who don't have their homes rebuilt but they have season tickets,'' Gordy said.

The Saints put their fans in high spirits by blocking a punt and scoring a touchdown in the first 90 seconds. They went on to win, 23-3, and improve their record to 3-0.

The renovation of the Superdome will total about 185 million when complete in another year, including 116 million in federal dollars dollars.

''The Superdome is a sign of hope and of progress,'' Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco said yesterday. ''It rises as a symbol of renewal and progress. We know we can bring our communities back.'' Yesterday's ''events reveal the passion, love and tears of an entire community and what they have overcome,'' said Mark Nicholls, president of a company that supplied new turf, one of three dozen contractors who had to start the restoration by removing nearly 4 million gallons of water, 4,000 tons of debris and cleaning or replacing 70,000 seats.

While the Superdome is open again, signs of Katrina's damage remain highly visible in the city, from boarded windows in the still-shuttered Hyatt Regency Hotel next door, to dumpsters full of trash and building material, to miles of deserted neighborhoods where rebuilding has yet to begin.

''The city leaders are dragging their feet but this gives people a little extra life, something to be proud of,'' said Bob Derbes, a long-time Saints season-ticket holder from nearby Belle Chasse.

REUTERS