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Cat 5 Hurricane Rita has tracked more northward during the night. Beaumont/Port Arthur/Lake Charles heads up.
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Posted on 09/22/2005 3:25:57 AM PDT by NautiNurse
Extremely dangerous Category 5 Hurricane Rita continues to threaten the Greater Houston Metropolitan area. The forecast track has shifted slightly to the northeast, increasing the risk to Southwest Louisiana, and a significant portion of the oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico. Texas Governor Perry is urging all coastal residents between Beaumont and Corpus Christi to evacuate as soon as possible.
The following links are self-updating:
Public Advisory Currently published every 3 hours 5A, 8A, 11A, 2P, etc. ET
NHC Discussion Published every six hours 6A, 11A, 6P, 11P
Three Day Forecast Track
Five Day Forecast Track
Rita Forecast Track Archive
Forecast Models
Buoy Data Western Gulf of Mexico
Houston/Galveston/Beaumont/Lake Charles Wx Watches/Warnings
Current Weather Warnings and Watches for Texas
Current Weather Warnings and Watches for Louisiana
Hi Res Houston Flood Zone Map Slow load, great detail
Images:
Storm Floater IR Loop
GOM WV Loop
GOM IR Still Image
Visible Storm Floater Still (only visible during daylight hours)
Color Enhanced Atlantic Loop
Streaming Video: (coverage may be intermittent)
KPRC-TV/DT Houston - KPRC-TV/DT Houston - http://mfile.akamai.com/12944/live/reflector:38616.asx
KHOU-TV/DT Houston: mms://beloint.wm.llnwd.net/beloint_khou
WWLTV NOLA
Additional Resources:
FReeper Sign In Thread Check in to let us know whether you are staying, going, and when you get there
FReepers Offering Lodging To Rita Evacuees People and/or Pet Friendly FReepers Offering Shelter
Coastal TX Evacuation Maps
Beaumont TX evac Routes
Lake Charles/Southwest LA Evacuation Map
KHOU Houston
KTRK ABC News Houston
KPLC Lake Charles Evac Routes, news
KFDM Beaumont/Port Arthur News, evac info
Hurricane City
Wxnation Houston
Galveston Webcams
Golden Triangle Weather Page Provides Galveston Weather, Warnings, Radar, etc.
| Category | Wind Speed | Barometric Pressure | Storm Surge | Damage Potential |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tropical Depression |
< 39 mph < 34 kts |
Minimal | ||
| Tropical Storm |
39 - 73 mph 34 - 63 kts |
Minimal | ||
| Hurricane 1 (Weak) |
74 - 95 mph 64 - 82 kts |
28.94" or more 980.02 mb or more |
4.0' - 5.0' 1.2 m - 1.5 m |
Minimal damage to vegetation |
| Hurricane 2 (Moderate) |
96 - 110 mph 83 - 95 kts |
28.50" - 28.93" 965.12 mb - 979.68 mb |
6.0' - 8.0' 1.8 m - 2.4 m |
Moderate damage to houses |
| Hurricane 3 (Strong) |
111 - 130 mph 96 - 112 kts |
27.91" - 28.49" 945.14 mb - 964.78 mb |
9.0' - 12.0' 2.7 m - 3.7 m |
Extensive damage to small buildings |
| Hurricane 4 (Very strong) |
131 - 155 mph 113 - 135 kts |
27.17" - 27.90" 920.08 mb - 944.80 mb |
13.0' - 18.0' 3.9 m - 5.5 m |
Extreme structural damage |
| Hurricane 5 (Devastating) |
Greater than 155 mph Greater than 135 kts |
Less than 27.17" Less than 920.08 mb |
Greater than 18.0' Greater than 5.5m |
Catastrophic building failures possible |
Previous Threads:
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part III
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part II
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part I
Tropical Storm Rita
Tropical Depression 18
Good morning, NN. I was just catching up on the prior thread. Don't know what to say other than good grief. It is beginning to look like the evacuation problems may be the Achilles heel here. Hours on the highway and running out of gas with cars breaking down. Not good.
Do you have a ping list for the Rita threads? If so, please add me on to it. Thanks.
Big shift north. Looks like this is going to hammer NOLA with rain.
New Thread
Cat 5 Hurricane Rita has tracked more northward during the night. Beaumont/Port Arthur/Lake Charles heads up.
New Thread
Cat 5 Hurricane Rita has tracked more northward during the night. Beaumont/Port Arthur/Lake Charles heads up.
Thread for Thursday morning. I know you're on the case.
If this thing tracks further north and east then they need to start evacuating some of the areas further up the coast. This could be a nasty surprise for some.
Satellite shows some weakening of the storm - nothing major though - but still.
The National Weather Service said early Thursday that Rita packs maximum sustained winds of nearly 175 miles an hour and stands as the third most powerful Atlantic storm ever seen, based on pressure readings taken by "hurricane hunter" aircraft.
"Some fluctuations in intensity are likely during the next 24 hours," a National Weather Service advisory said.
As of early Thursday, the hurricane watch zone extended from Port Mansfield, Texas, to Intracoastal City, La.
I suppose I could try to walk out. That's what some of the posters said the people without cars in NOLA should have done.
Special Wx statements for louisiana areas.
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/alerts/la.html#LAZ013.SHVSPSSHV.103200
Heard it's down to 150 from 175
NOLA is going to be the least of our worries this time around. Even if the levees don't hold it'll just set the timetable back for drying out the city. Look west for the real problems. Texas and Houston are going to get a chance to see if they can do any better than Louisiana did, because it sure looks like they're going to get tested.
OK, who's in charge of tracking news reports and FEMA activities for the after-storm timeline?
Was the traffic gridlocked all night long?
Good morning. I decided to take leave from work thru the rest of this week and I will be online for most of the day, today monitoring the situation.
We are in College Station.
This is beyond belief.
Not according to the weather channel guy I just heard on the radio. Still Cat 5 at 175, gusts to 200.
I'm thinking so. It was @ 11pm last nite and 4am this morning.
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