Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part VIII

NOAA - NHC ^ | 29 August 2005 | NOAA - NHC

[NautiNurse]

Category 4 Hurricane Katrina is approaching landfall in Eastern Louisiana. At 4:00AM EDT the storm's center was about 90 miles south of New Orleans.

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
Navy Storm Track
Katrina Track Forecast Archive Nice loop of each NHC forecast track for both three and five day
Forecast Models
Alternate Hurricane Models via Skeetobite
Bouy Data Louisiana/Mississippi
Buoy Data Florida

Lake Ponchartrain Real Time Water Level

Wind Speed Data

Images:

New Orleans/Baton Rouge Experimental Radar Subject to delays and outages - and well worth the wait

Mobile Long Range Radar Loop

New Orleans/Baton Rouge Radar

Ft. Polk, LA Long Range Radar Loop

Northwest Florida Long Range Radar

Storm Floater IR Loop
Storm Floater Still & Loop Options
Color Enhanced IR Loop

Other Resources:

Hurricane Wind Risk Very informative tables showing inland wind potential by hurricane strength and forward motion
Central Florida Hurricane Center
New Orleans Web Cams Loads of web cam sites here. The sites have been very slow due to high traffic
New Orleans Music Online Couldn't resist--love that jazz
Golden Triangle Weather Page Nice Beaumont weather site with lots of tracks and graphics
Hurricane City
Crown Weather Tropical Website Offers a variety of storm info, with some nice track graphics

Live streaming:

Cut and Paste:

http://www.wwltv.com/perl/common/video/wmPlayer.pl?title=beloint_khou&props=livenoad

Fully-linked version of the live feeds (just in case a few people don't want to first open up WMP to cut-and-paste) -

WWL-TV/DT New Orleans (WMP) - mms://beloint.wm.llnwd.net/beloint_wwltv
WVTM-TV/DT Birmingham (WMP) - mms://a1256.l1289835255.c12898.g.lm.akamaistream.net/D/

1256/12898/v0001/reflector:35255
WDSU-TV/DT New Orleans (WMP) - http://mfile.akamai.com/12912/live/reflector:38202.asx
Hurricane City (Real Player) - http://hurricanecity.com/live.ram
ABCNews Now (Real Player) - http://reallive.stream.aol.com/ramgen/redundant/abc/now_hi.rm
WKRG-TV/DT

Mobile (WMP) - mms://wmbcast.mgeneral.speedera.net/wmbcast

.mgeneral/wmbcast_mgeneral_aug262005_1435_95518 WDSU-TV/DT New Orleans via WESH-TV/DT Orlando - http://mfile.akamai.com/12912/live/reflector:38843.asx

Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part VII
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part VI
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part V
Hurricane Katrina, Live Thread, Part IV
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part III
Katrina Live Thread, Part II
Hurricane Katrina Live Thread, Part I
Tropical Storm 12

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

[topher]

Would this mean that there is oil pumping into the water where the oil rig used to be? Just wondering?

No. Oil rigs shutin at the sea floor. The oil rig might be ripped away, but it should not be spilling oil.

However, interrupting oil production (if enough production is affected) can affect prices.

[LibertyRocks]

Water coming in 2nd floor of Beau Rivage - Reporter says this is confirmed. 15-16 ft. above ground.

[silentknight]

I guess that would explain all the severe damage reports from the NWS? The media isn't hyping what is being reported by emergency management.

Damage is extensive.

[dirtboy]

I think that the media wants to make this storm look much worse than what it really is

This storm is still as strong as Charley was at landfall. And it's much, much, MUCH larger. Folks are having to climb to their roofs in NO. And you think this storm has been hyped? You have NO IDEA how bad things might be on the ground right now. It took them a day to figure out that Andrew trashed Homestead.

[kenth]

You too, huh... Sounded like a kid playing in the rain. After seeing this, I'm not so sure he went into journalism for the work as much as the thrills. He is nuts. Only after nearly getting crushed and/or impaled by flying roof did he decide that it might be a good idea to get to cover. (He is probably still sticking his head around the corner of the building now and then.)

[cyborg]

Why am I suspicious of your claims? Hmmmm Aug 29,2005 signup.

[gopwinsin04]

Any one have confirmation on the FOX report that the Mississipi levee broke in the French Quarter?

[KC_for_Freedom]

Sounds like the central park where soccer is played

[Broker]

Section 9 French Quarter levee breeched. FOX

[eyespysomething]

Beau Rivage flooding up to second floor

[dawn53]

I'm listening to Fox in the background. Somebody just said flooding is getting serious in the French Quarter. Has Shep been on, if so I missed him.

[eastforker]

No no, this storm is very dangerous, no doubt.

[jveritas]

On this one I agree. Fox news is being dramatic to the nth degree.

[Frank_Discussion]

Thanks. It just seemed like a westward shift. Not that it matters with this MOAS.

[Spiff]

Here's a map of known FReepers who are riding out the storm. It was generated with Google Earth and it includes live NSSL Hi-Res Reflectivity Radar. (1020 EDT)

We're keeping track of FReepers in Katrina's path in this thread. Much larger versions of this map are posted there, so keep in mind that the thread is graphics heavy at times. I got this image as small as I could get it.

[sonsofliberty2000]

He said "SugarBowl".

[GOPJ]

I agree. Nobody wants to see that guy standing outside. I keep having visions of his head being severed by flying debris. What is he really contributing here?

It's too "drama queen" for me. A more interesting approach would be to set up electronically controlled remotes in various sites. Some interacting, some not. Several in the dome, some on the beach, on the lake, at the levee... Some in police cars etc. Just to have people standing in the wind is boring and stupid. And please, it's not more dramatic if there's rain on the lens. Wipe it off. We know it's raining.

[Wonder Warthog]

"Tell me...why is the silt being deposited way out into the Gulf? Because the natural distributary process has been subverted! I'm not talking about today...think longer-term and broader."

Still don't see why Mississippi River silt has anything whatsoever to do with New Orleans possibly flooding. The "fouled up" silt deposition is why the coastal swamps shoreline are creeping north, not why New Orleans is below sea level. Of course, fixing that silt distribution would be very easy---just cut two "east-west" channels well up the isthmus---one from the Missippi towards the east, and one from the Mississippi towards the west.

"Secondly, levees could breach in multiple places. Lake Pontchartrain AND the river...but that's not the point. Why is there a levee for Lake P.? Perhaps because of its elevation relative to the the developed areas? Why such a difference? Again, think of long-term policies, not just today."

Breaching of the Mississippi River levees by a hurricane is so unlikely as to approach zero, as the levees are higher compared to Ponchartrain. The reason New Orleans is below sea level is because the LAND IS SINKING, due to the huge weight of all the buildings (built on Jello), and the pumping out of groundwater. Again--nothing to do with river silt.

"(And I note that the river elevation is "high," and the lake elevation is the "normal.")"

I assume you mean that for your graphic, which probably represents the Mississippi level at "flood stage", which only occurs in early spring. The river level during hurricane season is obviously much lower.

[dirtboy]

Quit posting that idiocy. It ain't funny right now.