Posted on 09/24/2005 9:58:36 AM PDT by 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
I replied to this one rather than your latest because I think the answer toyour question is here.
" The crest of the dam is at elevation 145.0 ft."
"The dam is served by a concrete gravity spillway with an ogee crest at elevation 99.0 ft."
I don't think they can lower the level less than 46 feet below the crest without pumps. I know they can't using the spillway alone.
However:
"The outlet works consist of a vertical inlet tower with five gates, a 550-foot long by 10-foot diameter
conduit, a 170-foot long stilling basin, and a concrete broad-crested weir."
This may be a drain, and it may be a hydroelectric setup. Either way, the height of the lowest gate on the inlet tower will be the lowest level that they can drain the lake unless other draining systems not mentioned exist or else they use pumps.
(The rest of that part means the tower connects to 550 foot by 10 foot penstock, or pipe, which feeds into a sort of dammed up lake below the main dam so that racing water from the upper water level doesn't destroy riverbanks downstream, and the "dam" below the stilling pond is really a weir, which means a dam just below the surface to slow things down.)
BTW, that's a good sized dam. It normally holds 1.75 million acre feet of water, and can hold up to 2 million in a pinch. By comparison, Boulder/Hoover dam has a capacity around 27 million acrefeet. (1 foot of water an acre in size).
If this one failed at normal capacity, it would flood around 2200 square miles, or an area 50 miles by 50 miles, to a depth of one foot.
Been busy all day so I've not read much.
Need to know if you're having picnics with grandmother's linen napkins...and if onyx made it to the auction. If so- did you get the flatware?
In NOLA, they were little more than slaves on the plantation. Now they've seen there's a world outside of NOLA, and an entirely different way to live. They've been given a new lease on life. What does going back to NOLA offer them? Segregation in an inner-city ghetto or public housing project? A monthly check but no hopes or aspirations? There are no substitutes for freedom and dignity, and now their children, and their children's children, will be able to build far better lives than the empty existence they would have been condemned to otherwise.
The roots go back decades, perhaps centuries, but in recent times, the answer might be spelled L-A-N-D-R-I-E-U.
Don't think I'll ever forget that one. I had a big ole honken truck and lived off Westheimer at the time.
LOL -- I dunno why, Yankee that I am, but I just love Cajun humor and coonass stories.
That was an awesome evac and you all deserve any pride you may feel.
That said, I can "hold it" for 36 hours too. After that...
You wanna come back early, you won't find a problem with me. Bring a box of one gallon ziplocks and a box of 30 gallon heavy garbage bags and you're in business. A 5 gallon bucket will fit under a standard seat for ease of use. Small wastepaper basket liners work better there.
As long as you bring your own water, or clorox and a filter, or if your neighbors all bring bags with them, just be careful with the chainsaws. The cuts are made outside the points of support, or it'll bind and you'll be wearing your Stihl to the hospital. (I know, more advice you don't need)
Glad a great city missed a direct strike by an ugly storm and if you all need a hand, just holler.
(Texans.....jeeeze.......gotta love 'em.......from a safe distance of course...)
:-)
I am watching hubby clean up the yard and I am starting the washing machine and putting clothes in the dryer. I think that is equal work but he is begging to differ.
A few clever Texans have a better idea. A few Houston-area-bound pickup trucks have reportedly been seen hauling Nationsrents trailers loaded with portapotties. Apparently, those individuals are going to provide something better than plastic bags for their neighbors and themselves.
Well, I suppose that means none of us are invited!! :(
susie
Try the food and the music!
Blanco begging ping
Typical liberal solution - don't solve the problem, just redefine it away!
The DPS wears cowboy hats. I don't think I see any HPD officers in hats of any kind.
That's good to know - thanks for the update. I returned to Carolina in 1993, so I'm a bit behind in these things!
MAWG, The the 10:00 PM Wednesday night NHC report put the center of the "cone of uncertainty" of the 5 day tracking forcast at Freeport, Texas ... putting Houston and vicinity in the NE quadrant.
The 10:00 PM advisory also stated:
THE ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE IS 897 MB...26.49 INCHES. THIS MEANS RITA IS THE THIRD MOST INTENSE HURRICANE IN TERMS OF PRESSURE IN THE ATLANTIC BASIN.
and
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 175 MPH...280 KM/HR...WITH HIGHER GUSTS. RITA IS A POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC CATEGORY FIVE HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON SCALE.
What part of those nasty little FACTS didn't you understand?
Sept 21 10:00 PM NHC Advisory
Rita Forecast Track Archive
So now, to quote your own words:
"I'm gonna ignore you because you either dont understand or you just want to argue"
Got it?
:) Men are lovely, eh?
Listening to your governor right now. She's making quite a fuss over the president. How grateful she is..how important he's been.
Here is a video showing the wave effects on Livingston dam.
They plan to draw the lake down 4 feet.
click "Trinity River rising" 2nd video from the top.
Its looks like some of the rip rap was swept away and the waves were still beating on the clay beneath at the time of the video.
http://www.khou.com/
did you just hear all the nice things she just said about President Bush?
Welcome to FR. Stick around a while and you will never be alone. Eagles up.
Is this an hourly ping, or what? Because if you're going to ping me every time Blank-O begs for more money, you're going be to pinging me a lot... {grin}
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