NZ woman describes horror of New Orleans

A New Zealand woman stranded on a pedestrian overpass in New Orleans watched buses roll into the city and hoped for rescue.

Zoe Hadlum, 18, was sheltering with other tourists, hiding from armed looters and surviving on potato chips.

She watched the buses arriving for days but was eventually taken to safety in Baton Rouge by Australian journalist Adam Harvey.

"For days they had been able to see the buses driving over the bridge leading into New Orleans," said Mr Harvey, the New York correspondent for News Ltd.

"They kept thinking they'd get out in a few hours, but then Wednesday, and Thursday, and Friday rolled around. When we found them on Saturday morning none [of the buses] had arrived at the convention centre."

Ms Hadlum had been marooned on the overpass with Britons Sean Wright from Leeds and Michelle Andrews, 20, from Cardiff.

The trio had been at a summer camp in North Carolina.

Mr Harvey said Mr Wright tried to convince the women to stay and wait for official rescue.

"I think that was nearly the last straw for the girls, who were weeping by that stage."

Ms Hadlum told him "life has been horrible".

"I've seen so many things I've never seen before."

She said the national guard had arrived the previous day and they had finally slept for more than a few minutes.

"It was too dangerous before that."

The friends said they had been forced to smash their way into stores for drinks.

"The walkway was the main route for looters hitting the shops on an enclosed, raised shopping strip on the Mississippi River," Mr Harvey told the Herald.

"Sean described a guy coming out with so many X-Boxes in his arms that his gun tumbled out of his pants and onto the ground."

They planned to continue their American holiday. Ms Hadlum is due to fly to London next week.