NEW ORLEANS (AP) — At least three people have been killed in New Orleans in separate weekend shootings, police said.

Around 7 a.m. Saturday, police say a 40-year-old man was shot to death, his body discovered in a vacant lot. Shortly after midnight Sunday, police responding to a report of gunfire found the body of another man in front of a house. Around 7 a.m. Sunday, a third man was killed, authorities said; police found him in a yard. Violent crime has been a major concern in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina two years ago. While recruitment efforts and pay have been bolstered in an effort to shore-up the police department’s ranks, the National Guard and Louisiana State Police still help patrol sections of the city.

The number of killings so far this year was not immediately available. A police spokeswoman did not immediately return a call seeking comment Sunday.