Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, who was the exasperated face of the deluged city during Hurricane Katrina, has been sentenced to 10 years in jail for corruption.

Prosecutors sought a tough penalty for Nagin, who was found guilty in February of 20 counts of bribery, money laundering and other crimes.

The Democrat helped contractors secure millions of dollars of work in exchange for bribes, free holidays and other gifts.

As part of the kickback scheme, Nagin (58) and his family received a trip to Hawaii, first-class airfare to Jamaica, private jet travel and a limousine for New York City.

Nagin, who has remained free on bail since his conviction, also accepted free granite for the stone company he and his sons owned.

The former cable TV executive had denounced New Orleans' culture of corruption when he ran for mayor in 2002. Nagin, who was mayor of the city until 2010, has maintained his innocence.

The trial heard that he began accepting bribes before Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005 and continued to do so during its recovery.

The hurricane flooded more than three-fourths of low-lying New Orleans and left more than 1,800 dead across the region.

Nagin's angry demands for emergency aid from Washington embarrassed the George W. Bush administration, which subsequently steered billions of federal dollars to Gulf Coast reconstruction.

But Nagin himself was also criticised at the time for failing to implement his evacuation plan when Katrina struck.