The head of the US Department of Homeland Security has acknowledged that his agency was guilty of serious lapses after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans last August.
Appearing before a Senate committee, Michael Chertoff said that due to an inadequate briefing he had gone to bed on the night of the storm thinking the city had escaped serious flooding.
Federal emergency agencies were unprepared for Hurricane Katrina and quicker White House involvement might have improved their response, said a harsh report by congressional Republicans released on Wednesday.
Mr Chertoff, who has so far withstood calls for his resignation, accepted blame for communication, planning and coordination flaws.
He also said he was astonished to hear former federal disaster chief Michael Brown say last week that he had intentionally ignored parts of the National Response Plan and avoided communicating with Mr Chertoff.
