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Part VI: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1490045/posts |
Posted on 09/22/2005 5:44:09 PM PDT by NautiNurse
Extremely dangerous Category Four Hurricane Rita continues to move toward landfall along the northwest Gulf of Mexico shoreline. Mandatory and voluntary evacuations continue across Texas and Louisiana coastal areas. Lake Charles LA is providing evacuations by bus for residents who have no transportation.
Traffic gridlock in the greater Houston area was compounded by gasoline stations without fuel, long lines at those stations still carrying fuel, and record breaking temperatures on the first day of autumn.
Offshore drilling platforms and rigs, as well as oil refineries, petrochemical and natural gas plants are in the path of the storm. Wave heights recorded by buoy have exceeded 38 feet. The refineries threatened by Hurricane Rita are on higher ground than those affected by flooding from Katrina. As a result, speculation abounds regarding future prices for winter heating fuel and gasoline.
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
KPLC-TV Lake Charles KPLC Streaming
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 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
1. Because emergency vehicles were still going into Houston.
2. Because they had to have a trooper car at every exit to keep folks from making a southbound entry.
Once those were taken care of, they made the change.
I didn't get those from Rita Crosby, but from a presser earlier today where the question was asked.
k
I guess they don't figure the place will get leveled or go under? Oh well, nevermind...
sw
I don't know about their success level, but here is the current official evac status:
The MANDATORY EVACUATION orders have been LIFTED for Aransas County, San Patricio County, City of Portland, Corpus Christi and Nueces County, (except Port Aransas, Mustang Island, Padre Island, and other low lying areas that are subject to flooding).
No doubt gasoline will be a problem. Went out to stock up at the store tonite. Lots of Spam out there but was lucky enought to find 16 oz cans of danish ham which I hear is getting hard to find. Even though I am not evacuating I know lots of my Texas Freepers are. God Speed.
Good evening Jim! Not looking good. Huge storm. In fact, our Jackson, MS NOAA has issued a statement advising us of possible power outages.
With our luck, we'll see the dark clouds on the eastern horizon and not much else. There's something about the air currents or the mischievous taunting of the gods that wards off rain in San Antonio.
Either that, or floods . . . :-)
of course it could just be a property owner getting ready to board up his window....
Doesn't this indicate the eyewall replacement cycle?
Last night this value was "Closed".
Can the eyewall become closed again tonight and tomorrow? It is supposed to run over a patch of warmer water tonight.
With MAJOR help from the Hurricane Hunters:
The value at H. means that the sea-level minimum pressure was extrapolated (down at the end of the message, it says it was based on the plane's altitude at the 700-mb level). If the measure was measured from a dropsonde, then just the pressure would be present.
The text at L. (where you saw the "closed" last night and see the "Open E-SW" tells the condition of the eyewall. Closed means that the eye is completely surrounded by thunderstorms, while open tells that it's open (the directios, if more than one are clockwise).
As for the eyewall replacement cycle (ERC), that's what Rita's been going through for the past few hours. That report suggests that it's almost done with it.
I heard on FOX that some medical personnel were staying behind with patients in the burn unit (didn't hear what hospital). God bless those people--they are saints!
My son and his family are riding it out in The Woodlands....they wanted to come north but couldn't get out!
She's now talking about Medical bldg in Galveston which has some horrible viruses - fortunately in a bldg that is constructed to withstand a Cat 5 storm. I hope the construction people followed their specs to a T.
I feel so sorry for the people that once again are being dislocated by the hurricane. However, on the other hand, they are reacting quite fast, and with the added benefit of Louisiania's screw up with the evacuation measures, it convinced many to leave.
Oh, and found this while hunting about hurricanes. It's from an open source encyclopedia (wikipedia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Katrina
Not exactly a dream vacation.
| Wind Direction (WDIR): | S ( 180 deg true ) |
| Wind Speed (WSPD): | 75.8 kts |
| Wind Gust (GST): | 101.0 kts |
| Wave Height (WVHT): | 26.6 ft |
| Dominant Wave Period (DPD): | 10 sec |
| Average Period (APD): | 7.1 sec |
| Mean Wave Direction (MWDIR): | SW ( 219 deg true ) |
| Atmospheric Pressure (PRES): | 28.12 in |
| Pressure Tendency (PTDY): | +0.71 in ( Rising Rapidly ) |
| Air Temperature (ATMP): | 78.6 °F |
| Water Temperature (WTMP): | 81.9 °F |
| Dew Point (DEWP): | 78.6 °F |
| Heat Index (HEAT): | 82.6 °F |
| Combined plot of Wind Speed, Gust, and Air Pressure | |
| TIME(CDT) | WDIR | WSPD |
|---|---|---|
| 7:50 pm | S ( 181 deg ) | 76.7 kts |
| 7:40 pm | S ( 185 deg ) | 85.7 kts |
| 7:30 pm | S ( 186 deg ) | 87.6 kts |
| 7:20 pm | S ( 191 deg ) | 85.5 kts |
| 7:10 pm | S ( 190 deg ) | 85.3 kts |
| 7:00 pm | SSW ( 197 deg ) | 77.9 kts |
I was beginning to wonder if they were going to recall the evac in Corpus. Figured they were erring on the side of uncertainty.
What's your take on BAMM's latest run that has her coming back down the coast?
Sheesh, is it too dangerous to transport them out of there? Just another thing to worry about . Deadly virus outbreak.
Jihadists must think the Weather God is Muslim.
This is from Larry Cosgrove on easternuswx.com. Not sure it should be copy/pasted, but I can break the rules. :)
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http://www.easternuswx.com/bb/index.php?s=&showtopic=53733&view=findpost&p=634477
Some pointers I would like to mention about Rita:
1) Dry air intrusion is not an issue with this storm. Had the hurricane taken a southward track toward the Rio Grande Valley, it might have drawn in a downsloped Mexican cTw regime that would have weakened it. But the cyclone is enclosed in its own envelope of mT values, and entrainment of lower dewpoints is not likely until the center gets into TX on Saturday.
2) The satellite thunderstorm presentation is strengthening, but eyewall reformation is still going on. This deep monster should drop below 910MB and could get into 900MB territory before landfall.
3) I watch with concern how some exaggerate wobbles and NWP depictions. Viewed by rotation around the subtropical high moving into the Carolinas, the landfall option (IMO) is now down to a Freeport to Port Arthur corridor. A case can be made for a left shore of Galveston Bay, but such a call would not be wise until we see ERC finished and the pace of reformation of the heat ridge in NM (which ultimately will slow or stall Rita).
4) Calls for weakening, at least those marking degradation of the hurricane, are invalid if one considers the lack of a shearing mechanism and the very warm SSTs in the path of Rita. I am afraid that some do not want another dangerous, high impact storm affecting a highly populated area. Be it the Golden Triangle (Beaumont-Port Arthur-Lake Charles) or the Houston/Galveston metro, Rita is going to put somebody in a world of pain early Saturday morning. And I think she will be slowed by the ridge expansion to her west, implying more misery through flooding and tornadoes for E TX, SE OK, SW AR, and far W LA.
Just my two dollars...
Best Regards
Larry Cosgrove
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