Britney Spears Thrills Teenage Katrina Victims  3/1/06

Britney Spears thrilled four teenage New Orleans, Louisiana school pals yesterday (27FEB06) when she dropped by a council meeting to take them shopping.

The foursome, aged from 13 to 17, were among those who lost everything in Hurricane Katrina last summer (AUG05), and Spears decided it was time to treat them to a day out.

One of the girls lost her pet dog in the flood, another has been living in a trailer ever since and all four were left homeless by the disaster.

Fellow Louisiana girl Spears joined US breakfast show Good Morning America to bring the girls a little cheer.

She took them to New Orleans department store Em's to treat them to new wardrobes and then hosted a lunch for them at top chef Emeril Lagasse's famous city restaurant, Emeril's, which opened especially for the pop star and her pals.

Spears says, "It was an honor to be here with all of them. We had so much fun and it was amazing."

Spears had one last treat for her four new pals - she gave them all fleur-de-lys pins on blue ribbons to represent rebirth.