President Barack Obama is pledging his administration will stick with the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast until the job of rebuilding from Hurricane Katrina is done.

Obama spoke in the city Sunday on the fifth anniversary of the deadly hurricane, and declared to those who dedicated themselves to their city's recovery: "Because of you, New Orleans is coming back."

The president gave his address at Xavier University, an institution wracked with debris and floodwaters in August 2005, but soon back in operation. New Orleans, he said, has become a "symbol of resilience and community."

The storm killed more than 1,800 people along the Gulf coast and flooded 80 percent of New Orleans.