10 years since Hurricane Katrina

New Orleans has celebrated how far the city has come since it was devastated by Hurricane Katrina while Obama delivered a speech last week at the Andrew P Sanchez Community Center in the Lower Ward.

More than 1800 people were killed across the US Gulf Coast - the vast majority in New Orleans - and over a million people were displaced when the hurricane struck on August 29, 2005. The financial toll topped $150 billion.

Katrina flooded 80% of New Orleans with water that rose as high as six metres. 

The city descended into chaos as increasingly desperate people with little food or clean water waited days for help to arrive. 

"There's still too many people who haven't been able to come back home," Obama said in the speech. 100 000 people still have not returned to their homes.

Watch President Obama's address below.

See pictures of the commemoration event below.