LOSING everything in the devastation of hurricane Katrina didn't stop Kevin Moore fulfilling his best man duties.Mr Moore, 44, has been re-building his life ever since Katrina ripped apart his neighbourhood in Biloxi, Mississippi on September 6 but he couldn't let his boy-hood friend down.

LOSING everything in the devastation of hurricane Katrina didn't stop Kevin Moore fulfilling his best man duties.

Mr Moore, 44, has been re-building his life ever since Katrina ripped apart his neighbourhood in Biloxi, Mississippi on September 6 but he couldn't let his boy-hood friend down.

He has retuned to Suffolk to be Peter Bennett's best man for his wedding to Paula Dempsey, 36, on today .

Mr Moore, who moved to America 20 years ago, said: “I had to come back for the wedding - I wouldn't have missed it for the world - I'm an Ipswich boy at heart.”

The pair met when they were 10-year-old kids at school in Holbrook more than 30 years ago and have been firm friends ever since despite Moore moving thousands of miles away.

When Katrina hit Biloxi it flattened homes, ripped out phone wires and left people stranded and unable to contact anyone.

Mr Bennett, 44, said: “It was a terrible disaster. I saw what had happened on TV and was very worried about Kevin.

“I couldn't call him as all the phone lines were down so I didn't know if he was alright. We didn't hear from him for three days until he got a call out to say he was safe.”

Mr Moore who has a wife, Beth, 43, and son, Alex, four, has been re-building his home and business for the last two months and still has lots more work to do.

He said: “My house was one of ten on the water and now there are only three left - it was awful.

“We lost all of our stuff but were lucky to save our house.”

Peter and Paula will be married at the Belstead Brook Hotel.