NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Major developments in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina

• Looting, carjacking and other violence spread in the Gulf Coast region, with even rescuers being attacked. The military expects to increase National Guard deployment to 30,000 from around the country to help with security, rescue and relief.

• Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco declared war on looters as 300 National Guard troops landed in New Orleans fresh from duty in Iraq. "These troops know how to shoot and kill, and they are more than willing to do so, and I expect they will," she said.

• The official death toll in Mississippi is 126 and rising. The New Orleans mayor estimated the death toll in his city to be in the hundreds if not thousands. He pleaded for buses and supplies for survivors, saying, "This is a desperate SOS."

• Half a day after the military began evacuating the Superdome, the arena held 10,000 more people than it did at dawn. Evacuees thinking it's the best place to get a ride out of town poured into the Superdome and swelled the crowd to about 30,000.

• Frustration grew among the thousands still awaiting help at the New Orleans Convention Center, where bodies lie among the living. Earlier, helicopter transfers of the sick and injured at the Superdome were suspended amid security concerns.

• The state of Texas agreed to triple to 75,000 the number of evacuees being taken in from Louisiana. Houston's Astrodome stopped taking refugees Thursday night after accepting 11,000 and sent buses to other shelters in the area; others were relocating to San Antonio or Dallas.

• President Bush plans to tour the region Friday. He warned against looting and price-gouging and asked his father, former President Bush, and former President Clinton to lead a fund-raising campaign for victims.

• Congress rushed to provide a $10.5 billion down payment in relief aid. The Senate approved the measure Thursday night, and the House will convene at noon on Friday to speed the measure to Bush's desk.

• Gasoline supplies tightened in markets that depend on Gulf Coast refiners. As gas prices rose above $3 a gallon, some retailers were overrun by motorists wanting to beat further increases.