Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part IV

NHC - NOAA ^ | 22 September 2005 | NHC - NOAA

[NautiNurse]

Extremely dangerous Category 5 Hurricane Rita continues to threaten the Greater Houston Metropolitan area. The forecast track has shifted slightly to the northeast, increasing the risk to Southwest Louisiana, and a significant portion of the oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico. Texas Governor Perry is urging all coastal residents between Beaumont and Corpus Christi to evacuate as soon as possible.

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
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:

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)

KPRC-TV/DT Houston - KPRC-TV/DT Houston - http://mfile.akamai.com/12944/live/reflector:38616.asx
KHOU-TV/DT Houston: mms://beloint.wm.llnwd.net/beloint_khou
WWLTV NOLA

Additional Resources:

FReeper Sign In Thread 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
Coastal TX Evacuation Maps
Beaumont TX evac Routes
Lake Charles/Southwest LA Evacuation Map
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 III
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part II
Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part I
Tropical Storm Rita
Tropical Depression 18

[AliVeritas]

That's it. That is not only the Line of the day on FR (I have seen great ones today btw), that should be a t-shirt.

I must borrow it.

[norton]

Looked like you could use one.
(Oh, and try Shasta diet Grapefruit)

[bwteim]

"AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS HURRICANE"

COASTAL STORM SURGE FLOODING OF 15 TO 20 FEET ABOVE NORMAL TIDE LEVELS"

"RAINFALL TOTALS IN EXCESS OF 25 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE AFTER RITA MOVES INLAND."

Add
HURRICANE FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 85 MILES = 170 mile circle of spinning winds of 70mph+

Not much to decipher here, I think.

[jacquej]

If you can get some flour and yeast, I can talk ya through your first loaves of homemade bread, but ya have to act fast before the power goes off...

[freema]

I despise him too, and he did do a darn good job with Ophelia, butttttttt I heard on my local station at noon that folks (Salter Path) are plugging ahead on their own...haven't seen FEMA, piles of debris waiting to be picked up, nobody knows who's coming to get it or when. Not bitchin' mind you, in the least, from what I saw...just saying that's the state of affairs.

A Marine Mom I know in Tx, with a son (unavailable) in Combat Training here, spent two hours on the phone with Red Cross yesterday so that she could get an alternatate number to her son in case the power went out, spoke to a kajillion new volunteers who know nothing about how to contact the military.

[SolomoninSouthDakota]

Sure! Go ahead. It's not like you are requiring him to starve. Be at peace.

[Eaker]

We have bread, but we are selling it by the slice!

Stay safe Xena!

[dfwgator]

As of midday, all lanes of I-45 were going to be turned northbound for an 80-mile stretch stretch between Houston and Buffalo,

I didn't know Houston was so close to New York.

[metmom]

Actually, it's written in pretty plain English. THEY JUST LIKE TO YELL ON THESE BULLETINS. If you don't let that intimidate you, you should be OK. Basically, they're expectin winds of 150 mph, 8-15 inches of rain with totals of up to 25" depanding on where you are. The storm surge is expected to be 15-20 feet. And it's big. There'll be an update at 4 PM Central time.

[Dog Gone]

DG, the invitation stands!

Hey, I've got bread! And about 8 lbs of various summer sausages and hard salamis.

I'd like about a half gallon of gasoline for my chain saw. I can see a deal in the making...

[Howlin]

Mine were on Edgewood Avenue until 2001. Lots still there now.

[numberonepal]

Our drink word for Katrina was "bowl". "Soup bowl" was a doubler.

[bwteim]

"Likely targets include the national Weather Service for an inaccurate early call, the NHC,..."

I think you will see confirmation of this in future pressers from Blanco.

[ruoflaw]

I wish you had a bread machine!

[AliVeritas]

LOLOL

[kittymyrib]

Yep, it's really easy to get on TV and order an evacuation and then have NO highways with the capacity to handle 1.3 million evacuees. Why contraflow wasn't started last night is a mystery only TX Gov. Rick Perry can solve. I suspect it's because every square inch of highway in Texas now has to have a concrete Mexican truck barrier built in the center and you don't have the flexibility you need in this situation. The people I know who have been on the road for hours and have gone nowhere have decided they are going to turn around and go home. This was such a botched evacuation that it almost makes Gov. Blanko look good.

[brothers4thID]

Add the Tropical Storm watch for the NO area but I cannot convince our corporate headquarters to sit up and take notice. We have re-building employees housed and working out of TRAILERS. Tornadoes on the NE quadrant, even with only TS windfields nearby, are not something I want to be flirting with. They are all pulling up www.weather.com and saying "Oh it's going to hit Texas."

[DallasMike]

Check out the current GOES Infrared Ch. 4 Dvorak Floater Loop. Rita has been jogging more westward for the past hour or so. The story is still out on exactly where Rita will make landfall.

 

 

[Howlin]

LOL.........you are having way TOOOO much fun in the storm.

[Eaker]

If you can get some flour and yeast,

People have bought the last dust bunnies under the shelves. If Xena can find yeast I would suggest brewing beer rather than making bread!