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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
see 1277
And that's the west quadrant, which would not have the strongest winds...153 kt on the weaker side at Flight level...
Oil rigs in the path of Hurricane Rita (map: RigZone.com)
Tom Delay's district looks like it's going to get hammered. (bad accidental pun I realized after I typed it)
Nope, they will "switch" to accusing Bush of using the situation for "political advantage"...
No matter what Bush does, it is "wrong" according to the Dems.
why did they say 150 MPH when its obviously 153 KNOTS?
Thanks for the info...sounds very scary!
On a much light headed harry reid note, I heard on Rush that harry reid is going to call for hearings of why the response in Texas is so much more organized than with Katrina in Louisiana.
Thanks much - is the yellow gas and the grey oil?
Maybe they don't believe what they are seeing. Crap, two storms like this in 3 weeks. This sucks. God, please put it in everybody's heart to evacuate. We don't need another 1,000 dead people here.
Just the first sip, the first taste, of the bitter cup that has been proferred to us by climate change, which THIS administration has ignored, by failing to sign Kyoto protocol. -- Algore
Eyewall Replacement Cycle. It's when the eye closes and opens again. Usually there is a burst of strength when the eye is opening back up coupled with a "flattening" of the wind filed. I see no indication of an ERC in this storm yet, and it may already be annular (no ERC).
Holy crap. This thing is redefining "explosive intensification." The winds are finally catching up to the bottom dropping out of the pressure.
152 knots = 175 mph at flight level, so yeah, 150 mph MINIMUM at ground level makes sense. She'll make Cat 5 by nightfall, and hold it for a little while before weakening closer into shore.
Katrina's younger sister, but not "little" sister.
}:-)4
http://gom.rigzone.com/rita.asp
Interactive map of oil rigs in path of Rita
It usually means that you are looking at a strong Cat 3 at the least and typically a Cat 4 or stronger.
That would be a very wise thing to hold hearings on.
They would clearly show the competence of Republicans versus the incompetence of nincompoop Democrats.
George Bush Doesn't Care About The Texas Gulf Coast!
Texas will react much differently than Louisiana did.
I REALLY feel for the evacuees that are in Texas from New Orleans.
Twice in one year is too much (with a nod to any Floridians who weathered 4 of these damned things)
No problem. Join the club...I just gave bad advice/info on Interstate 10 a few posts prior.
Nap time.
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