D-Day anniversary helps WWII museum

NEW ORLEANS, June 12 (UPI) -- Officials at the National World War II Museum in New Orleans say they set a new attendance record thanks to the recent anniversary of D-Day.

Museum President Gordon Mueller said the 5,000 visitors to the museum during last weekend's 65th anniversary of D-Day marked a post-Hurricane Katrina attendance record for the tourist site, New Orleans City Business reported Thursday.

Saturday marked the official anniversary of the start of the Allied invasion of Normandy during World War II. The final visitor tallies from Saturday and Sunday combined equaled the tourism numbers from the 60th D-Day anniversary in 2004.

The previous post-Katrina visitor record for the museum was set in 2007 when the site hosted a exhibit about famed WWII victim Anne Frank.

"Reaching this visitor milestone is gratifying news for our museum and a sign that we're playing an important role in reviving the New Orleans economy and tourism industry," Mueller told City Business.