New Orleans is marking the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. A series of vigils are being held to remember the more than fifteen hundred victims who died when the storm breached levees and submerged eighty percent of the city. Wreathes are being layed at the site of each successive levee breach. A funeral procession of jazz musicians is to wind through New Orleans’ streets in one of city’s oldest traditions. President Bush is expected to attend a prayer service at the city’s convention center where thousands of people were left stranded without food and medical aid. On Monday, Bush gave a speech in Biloxi, Mississipi. The President emphasized his number of visits to the Gulf Coast.

• President Bush: “Since the days of heroism and bravery, the Gulf Coast has begun one of the largest rebuilding efforts in our nation’s history. This is my 11th visit, since the storm hit. You know each visit, you see progress. I was struck by the beauty of the beaches. The beaches were pretty rough after the storm, as you know. Today, they’re pristine, and they’re beautiful. They reflect a hopeful future, as far as I’m concerned.”

The New York Times reports President Bush delivered his remarks “against a carefully orchestrated backdrop of neatly reconstructed homes. Just a few feet out of camera range stood gutted houses with wires dangling from interior ceilings. A tattered piece of crime scene tape hung from a tree in the field where Mr. Bush spoke. A toilet seat lay on its side in the grass.”