Officials are beginning to get a clearer idea of the extent of the damage left by Hurricane Rita.

Devastation to some small, rural towns in Southeast Texas and Southwestern Louisiana was virtually complete and at least nine people died in the aftermath of the hurricane.

East Texas Congressman Kevin Brady says the region "needs everyone's attention this hour, right now, and it doesn't matter whether it's the state or FEMA or the Corps of Engineers."

“These communities are the last to complain, but they've reached the end,” he said.

The number of deaths rose to nine Monday when the bodies of five people were found in a Beaumont apartment. A man, his girlfriend's three children and their aunt apparently were overcome by carbon monoxide from a generator they used to power fans to cool their home.

The last of the Houston-area residents who evacuated were scheduled to return home Tuesday, but residents of Beaumont, Port Arthur and Orange are blocked from returning to their homes because of the danger of debris-choked streets and downed power lines.

Officials in the East Texas town of Jasper say they weren't prepared for hurricane-force winds nearly 100 miles inland from Hurricane Rita

Jasper Police Chief Todd Hunter says sustained winds of 100 to 120 miles per hour for nine hours toppled the city's lush pines onto power lines and homes.

Now, Jasper residents have gone three days without water and are getting desperate. The city was also running out of food and gas.

Acting City Manager Denise Kelley says the emergency won't be quickly resolved. She says she's been told it'll be one to two months before power is restored to the town of 8,300 residents.

Jasper's electric provider is based in Beaumont and, until Beaumont is up and running, Jasper will have to wait.

Jasper was under a mandatory evacuation Thursday, but many stayed. Some evacuees from farther south also ended up in Jasper.

Oil companies said damage to their massive Texas refineries from Hurricane Rita appeared lighter than expected, but analysts still predicted that retail gasoline prices may remain near $3 a gallon for weeks or even months longer.

The Coast Guard says it's reopened waterways in Texas, Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico, but with some restrictions.

The Houston Ship Channel is open to all daylight tug and barge traffic, as well as to vessels drafting less than 35 feet.

The Calcasieu, Neches and Sabine rivers are open to daylight tug and barge traffic, as are parts of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.

Only a portion of the Calcasieu River to Cameron Parish in Louisiana is closed. And Entergy Texas and Coast Guard crews are working to remove a downed power line in a section of the
Intracoastal Waterway.

The Coast Guard advised boaters to be careful because some aids to navigation might not be working.

President Bush plans to get a personal report Tuesday when he visits to Beaumont and Lake Charles and gets an aerial view of the damage.

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