He said the job isn't done, but President George W. Bush thinks the first phase of the response to Hurricane Gustav "went very well."

No Homecoming Yet | Gustav Section | Track Hanna

Bush visited Louisiana on Wednesday, and spoke to workers in a crowded emergency command center in Baton Rouge. He told them the emergency effort had been "better coordinated" than it was during Hurricane Katrina three years ago.

But with hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses left without power in Louisiana, Bush is calling on utility companies in neighboring states to send extra manpower there, if they can spare it.

From his motorcade, Bush could see downed trees and street signs. He also saw damage from above as Air Force One landed.

Bush said, "All in all, the response has been excellent." But he said people in Louisiana know that "there is more work to be done."

New Orleans Mayor Reluctantly Lifts Evacuation Order

New Orleans' mayor said he's not comfortable with people streaming back into his city so soon after the evacuation prompted by Hurricane Gustav.

But Ray Nagin told WWL-TV that he had no choice but to lift an evacuation order because surrounding communities have started to allow people back in. He said a dusk-to-dawn curfew will remain in place indefinitely amid fears of looting.

The city remains partially crippled, with most neighborhoods in the dark and hospitals running on generators.

More than a million homes and businesses in Louisiana are still without power. And the state said it could be a month before the air conditioning returns for all.

Gov. Bobby Jindal said there's "no excuse" for the delay in getting the power back on. He called the issue the "No. 1 obstacle" to recovery.

Residents Say Officials Overreacted

Millions fled the Gulf Coast in fear of Hurricane Gustav, billed billed by Nagin as the apocalyptic "mother of all storms." It didn't deliver. Now, with three other storms lining up in the Atlantic, some fear people won't listen next time.

Despite urgings to hold off on homecomings, the first of the 2 million people who fled Gustav began trickling home Tuesday from shelters, many grumbling about the food, the heat, the overcrowding, the uncertainty and the frustrating wait for the all-clear.

Some evacuees, particularly in Texas, on the far fringes of the storm's path, suggested authorities overreacted in demanding they leave their homes.

Emergency officials strongly defended the decision to evacuate coastal areas, saying that with something as unpredictable as a hurricane, it is better to be safe than sorry -- a lesson driven home by Katrina, which killed 1,600 people in the U.S. in 2005, compared with nine deaths attributed to Gustav.

Officials noted that, yes, New Orleans' levees held, and Gustav struck only a glancing blow. But when trees fell on homes, power lines went down and roads were washed out, there was no one around to get hurt.

Damage Estimates Between $2M-$10B

While the impact of Gustav on the Gulf Coast was far less than Katrina's, there was significant damage.

Early insurance industry estimates put the expected damage to covered properties in a range of $2 billion to $10 billion. Damage from Katrina totaled $41 billion.

Bush met Tuesday with Vice President Dick Cheney, several Cabinet secretaries and about 20 other advisers to assess the damage the hurricane wrought on U.S. oil drilling and refining operations in the Gulf Coast area. Bush said that while it's too early to assess the damage, it should prompt Congress to approve more domestic oil production.

More Storms Follow Gustav

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Hanna is looming and could threaten the southeast coast later this week, anywhere from Florida to the Carolinas.

Three more storms are brewing far out at sea. Ike was upgraded to a hurricane at about 5 p.m. Eastern time and Tropical Storm Josephine could also become hurricanes in coming days. National Hurricane Center officials said that Tropical Depression Karina formed about 315 miles southwest of the southern tip of Baja California.