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Posted on 09/21/2005 1:36:24 AM PDT by NautiNurse
Category 3 Hurricane Rita became the fifth major hurricane of the 2005 season during the night. Hurricane Rita threaded the needle through the Florida Straits and moved into the Gulf of Mexico. Storm damage in the Florida Keys and South Florida Peninsula was light, with scattered power outages, scattered tornados, and mild to moderate flooding.
Mandatory evacuations are in effect for Galveston County TX and New Orleans. Additional evacuation orders in the Greater Houston Metropolitan Area are anticipated throughout the day.
Crude oil prices reacted as oil producers shut down and evacuated workers from platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.
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 Eastern Gulf of Mexico
Buoy Data Western Gulf of Mexico
Current Weather Warnings and Watches for Texas
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
Key West Long Range Radar Still Image
Streaming Video: (coverage may be intermittent)
KHOU-TV/DT Houston: mms://beloint.wm.llnwd.net/beloint_khou
WWLTV NOLA
Additional Resources:
Coastal TX Evacuation Maps
KHOU Houston
KTRK ABC News Houston
Hurricane City
Wxnation Houston
| 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 I
Tropical Storm Rita
Tropical Depression 18
The nuclear part of it (essentially, the containment building) shouldn't be endangered by even a direct hit by Rita.
I wonder about all the mess nearby, don't remember what it's called, that feeds that 2500MW onto the grid; if there's substantial damage there, it could affect much of Texas until it's substantially repaired. IIRC, everything went through a single large and somewhat complicated station a distance outside the plant itself.
Do you know, shield, if both units are online?
I need to find a pic of Katrina to compare, but I'm pretty sure Rita's larger now. And as she keeps growing, she continues to affect Florida even though she's moving away. The upper Keys and the Homestead area are still being hit by some nasty outer bands right now.
I don't know how you do what you do but I'm awfully glad that you do it.
Easier said than done!
Yep, video'd the outside of the house during the day yesterday and also video'd the inside of the house and the important items.
Check in as soon as you get somewhere with Internet access.
Hang on...I have one of Katrina just coming off the Florida coast. Will upload and link.
Yeah, or so I was told. Am going to lay down for a bit longer, but still see radar images with my eyes closed.
I and my family are out of here at 0600 Friday.
That's too late! You'll be stuck in traffic and the crappy weather (rain and wind) will come well ahead of the hurricane. Why wait so long?
I am going to take nap..! Take care everyone.
Today as always I will be cubicle-bound so will be lurking periodically to see what's up. *g
Overall, it was much less than the impact Katrina had three weeks ago. No flooding, not that much thunder and lightning, and gusts probably never topped 40 mph. Rain was heavy, but intermittent. Probably no more than two or three inches, compared to the nearly twenty Katrina dumped here. And the power never went off. Even so, I put my shutters up for this one, which I didn't do for Katrina.
Sounds like you've done a great job! A few more things...did you put plastic trash bags over tv, computer, etc. Also - turn off electric/gas, clean out the refrigerator and leave the door ajar...
Good luck, prayers and Good speed to you.
My job.
thanks
Reuters. All the news that fits, we print.
At that point, she'd just gone down to 70 mph before quickly getting back up to 80. I'm still surprised she maintained a steady 80 throughout her transit across Miami-Dade. She actually started to weaken while going across the Everglades.
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