Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part VIII

www.freerepublic.com | September 24, 2005

[Howlin]

Hurricane Rita landfall is anticipated within the next few hours. Strong winds and heavy rains are battering southern Louisiana and southeastern Texas.

MSM news crews are shouting over the howling winds as they foolishly describe blowing rain, swaying trees, and crashing waves through rain splattered camera lenses. It's a hurricane. We know these things already.

An 18 wheeler rig reportedly overturned on an I-10 bridge. The fate of the truck driver is unknown at this time. Reports of widespread power outages in Lake Charles. KPLC-TV Lake Charles local news has remarkably improvised their reporting from a remote location. They are taking calls from residents, NWS, and public utility representatives, and alerting residents to local conditions.

On the flip side, CNN announced to the world that law enforcement officers had evacuated from Port Arthur TX with the rest of the population. Engraved looter invitations would have been more elegant.

Godspeed to all those in the path of this storm.

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
Jefferson Co TX NWS Weather
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:

Lake Charles Long Range Radar Still image, with loop link
Houston/Galveston Long Range Radar Still image, with loop link
Lake Charles Experimental Radar Outages and Delays May Occur

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)

KHOU-TV/DT Houston
KPRC-TV/DT Houston
KTRK-TV/DT Houston
KTRH-AM Houston
KPLC-TV/DT Lake Charles/Lafayette
KSLA-TV/DT Shreveport

Additional Resources:

Hurricane Rita Freeper CHECK IN THREAD

FReeper Sign In Thread (LOCKED) 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
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 VII
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part VI
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part V
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part IV
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part III
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part II
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part I
Tropical Storm Rita
Tropical Depression 18

[CedarDave]

Should add KRISTINN is the host for the event.

[Spktyr]

Exactly so.

Texans look around, see something that needs doing in the best interest of the community, and then go do it - despite the cost.

What happened in New Orleans was a bunch of the elites looking around, deciding what was in their own personal best interest, and letting everyone else fend for themselves (i.e., left them to drown in NO).

The difference may seem small on paper, but the resulting actions couldn't possibly be more disparate. Texan citizens were loading up their neighbors in their own vehicles to get them out, they towed disabled cars out of harm's way, those that had excess gasoline or food and water shared it, and those that were evacuating that had room loaded up those people they found stranded on the freeways. We knew the government was busy helping those that simply couldn't get out on their own.

We in Texas do not depend on the government to save us. I pray that we never do, because when you do, you run the risk of the government abandoning you, as it did in NO.

[Howlin]

I beg to differ; the people in New Orleans who willing ignored the evacuation order and stayed ARE one of the main reasons there was a breakdown in law and order; it wasn't the sick and feeble that caused the riots and crime.

Odd that some conservatives that espouse free-market and self reliance would encourage Texans to jump on the government cheese bandwagon.

Why don't you show me where I said anything close to that.

I'm merely saying that people should wait to go back until it's SAFE and you won't be a drain on resources needed to get the water, electricity, crime, etc., reassembled.

And try not to act like Texans are the only citizens who have the attitude you have; we have hurricanes right here in North Carolina every single year and don't have the problems that they had in New Orleans, because we don't wait for George Bush or FEMA to come in and help.

We do, however, listen to our state leaders since they hopefully have the entire picture, not just what's in our own small neighborhoods.

[SouthTexas]

Note from friend in Bosier City--all is well, power and communications.

Don't know how the roast turned out. ;)

[laz]

Say, when are Blank-O and Nawwwwgin up for re-election anyway?

I have no idea, but they sure are in a hurry to get the voters back. They really do think that they can restore things to the way they were pre-Katrina. It remains to be seen how NOLA is going to end up after all is said and done, but things will never be as before.

[LA Woman3]

And Robert Wood Foundation subsidized Acadien. And one of the big deals at Acadien ran for Gov on the dem ticket but lost in the primary.


The Dr. from Lafayette??

[jeffers]

Although there are certain inelasticities and economies of scale that come into play, not to mention choices involving opportunity costs, the main thrust of that discussion involved more hydrodynamics than economics, as you'll see if you trace it back a couple of posts.

;-)

[beckybea]

Good post explaining Texas mindset. Are you from Jasper? MrBea and I rode through Jasper Thursday, evacuating from Conroe. Beautiful, beautiful countryside.

[Howlin]

Did you sign in here?

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1490520/posts

We're taking roll!

[Howlin]

I agree with every word of that.

But I see no reason to go back until the authorities say it's SAFE.

[Spktyr]

I think I should mention a few facts about Texas for those people that aren't all that familiar with the place.

Every form of poisonous plant, venomous snake, or lethal insect in North America has some members of their species living in Texas. (Yes, including liberals and Democrats.) Most dangerous animals also live here, including feral hogs, alligators, and bears.

Texas is subject to every form of natural disaster found in North America except the avalanche and the volcanic eruption, and I'm sure that if we give nature enough time she'll figure out some way to send us those, too. We get bitterly cold (even by Canadian standards) winters up in the Panhandle; we get earthquakes in Fort Worth; we get wildfires in the central portion of the state. We have West Texas, which is second only to Death Valley and certain parts of Arizona in terms of heat and the number of people it kills.

Accordingly, disaster and danger are not unfamiliar visitors to Texas. We deal with it on a daily basis. This is life in this state, for good or ill, and it requires people that help their neighbors and band together for the common good. Failure to do so can be fatal for everyone concerned. Waiting for someone else to come bail you out can be fatal in Texas, and everyone knows it. You have to be able to deal with catastrophic problems either on your own or in company with your neighbors. You help those that can't, for whatever reason, because next time it could be you, and you know the cavalry isn't going to come in the nick of time and save the day.

This is part of why Texans are the way we are.

[laz]

We will move back in on FM roads, and help each other. It is just what we are taught to do. Instinct cannot be replaced or overridden by one speech from the governor.

The spirit that made this country great, that drove the settlers West and helped them tame a continent, is still alive in Texas, even after all this time. That spirit is dead wherever liberalism has been allowed to grow like a weed or a cancer. Liberalism is the antithesis of God-given, inalienable rights.

[ekwd]

Did Mayfield start telling people from Galveston and Houston there was no need to evacuate?

In my 59 years I've been through one typhoon (watching through a window at Narita International in 1979) and had the remnants of many go by here. My aunt, whose daughter is a cop in Houston, was in Columbia, SC when Hugo didn't just die out after going ashore at Charleston but caused serious damage 100 miles inland. I don't pretend to be able to predict a hurricane's path or determine which prediction is correct, but I have some experience at "crisis coping", a more accurate term than "crisis management". I can tell you for a fact that people who make decisions have to make them based on the information they have at the time rather than what turns out to be true.
Suppose for a second that the Galveston landfall had been correct. When would you have started evacuations so that 1.5 million people could get at least 100 miles away from the coast?
If you want to make a serious point about "hurricane fatigue", then do it. Just spare me the tinfoil hat conspiracy theories.

[SouthTexas]

Yepper, #22.

"Checking in" has been standard practice in our family since the invention of telephones. ;)

[Spktyr]

Most people *are* waiting. Those that are going back (in general) are either going to places they have already heard are safe or have the skills, supplies, and equipment to *make* it safe.

Some 40% of Texas is either former LEO, former military, or other hard occupation that would normally qualify them as pointmen on relief efforts elsewhere.

[SouthTexas]

Amen.

[ekwd]

I just finished a dog-walk/recce around here. The 100-footers are still swaying, but so far we've lost only one foot-thick limb that Katrina started and Rita finished. Hoping for some rain here, praying that Rita didn't do to SE TX/SW LA what it seems to have done. Bon Chance to all.

[tarheelswamprat]

But Texans will decide for themselves what is best and take the consequences.

Not that it would ever get like that in Texas, but isn't that attitude just what caused all the problems in New Orleans?

Please PMJI here, but Spktyr is correct in this case. You are also partially correct regarding the problems in New Orleans - but you discounted the "take the consequences' aspect of his statement, even though you paid it lip service by saying "not that it would ever get like that in Texas". "Attitude" was indeed responsible for many of the problems in NO, but it was a completely different type of attitude than that of the Texans.

There is a world of difference between returning and expecting someone else to take care of you and for them to have everything fixed-up for your comfort, and returning with the full knowledge that you and your neighbors will be responsible for getting a large part of the work done yourselves. It's simply the difference between an attitude of entitlement and an attitude of personal responsibility.

Granted, there will be a few whiners in Texas, and the MSM will eagerly seek them out and try to portray them as the norm, but that will be a lie.

I have one other observation regarding "attitude". I noticed in the press conference yesterday given by Houston Mayor Ed White about the instructions and timelines for returnees that the Mayor took great pains to say "We strongly ask the citizens honor our request..." that they follow the guidelines outlined.

We "ask" and "request" - not "evacuees are ordered", or even "evacuees are instructed". Mayor White knows his constituents. They are Texas citizens, not serfs, and he knows that they will respect him and follow his guidance only if he shows them the same respect and consideration. Imagine what this country could accomplish if government officials elsewhere could relearn this basic lesson.

[ARealMothersSonForever]

We will have to agree to disagree that the "holdouts" are the problem. Reference the Eaker clan and others. My contention is that dependancy on the government to provide for food, water, fuel, and safety from looters is "government cheese" mentality. You did not state that Texans should go sign up for government cheese. You did re-iterate that us commoners should wait until the government made everything SAFE for us. We are the local government. So we will go back in and make it safe. The FEMA provided MRE's, fuel, and water are a welcome assistance. And bravo for North Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, and all the other states that have shown through the years how to "git 'er done"! Our neighborhoods make up our communities, our communities make up our cities, our cities make up our counties, and our counties make up our great state. The people that are returning are doing so out of a sense of civic duty.
Again, I am not putting you down! Governor Perry, the county commissioners, all of the mayors, and yes even our city councilmen (who are the unsung heroes in all of this) are doing their level best. We just believe in active participation.

[laz]

We in Texas do not depend on the government to save us. I pray that we never do, because when you do, you run the risk of the government abandoning you, as it did in NO.

Would you care to bottle this attitude and export it to every other state in the Union? It would restore this nation's greatness to previous levels. At the very least, it would annoy the Europeans. ;)