Hurricane Katrina victims to sue oil firms

Victims of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans, are to bring legal action against a number of oil giants which they claim contributed to the global warming that they believe led to the disaster.

A number of people from southern Mississippi are behind the lawsuit, which states that they believe oil firms including ExxonMobil, Shell, BP and Chevron caused a rise in air and water temperatures which "in turn caused a rise in sea levels and added to the ferocity of Hurricane Katrina, which combined to destroy the plaintiffs' private property, as well as public property useful to them".

This is according to extracts from legal documents published by news agency AFP.

The original case was brought back in 2005 but was initially rejected by courts. However, it has since been passed through the legal system by three federal appeal court judges and is now set to be looked at again over the next three months.

The official death toll of Hurricane Katrina is 1,300 but many believe the real number to be much higher, as strong winds and water may have carried away many victims.

Written by Kimberley Homer.

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