STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Steve Inskeep.

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

And I'm David Greene. Good morning.

The water rose so quickly along the coast of Louisiana, that it trapped two men whose job it was to keep it down.

INSKEEP: Two water pump operators were on the job in Plaquemines Parish near the mouth of the Mississippi River. The ocean spilled over a levee and surrounded them with water before they could get away.

GREENE: They ended up on the levee itself, the only ground above water they could reach, until boats could reach them.

INSKEEP: And that is just one of the stories we're hearing as Hurricane Isaac creeps ashore. The rising water trapped scores of people on rooftops or attics, we're told. And though this storm is much weaker than Hurricane Katrina seven years ago, people report severe damage in some areas.

GREENE: And we'll be covering all of these developments throughout the morning and throughout the day. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.