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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
we live not far from Jim Hogg Road.
Poor Ima. I read she was named after a heroine in a poem her uncle (father's brother) wrote. I doubt that consoled her.
And they ALWAYS seem to be hours behind the cycle...
The Houston traffic sight has traffic CLEARING and speeding up on the way out of Houston.
And I notice NO ONE in the MSM even bothering to talk about the traffic jams they have on NORMAL DAYS!!!
lol - my grand daughter complains that living in The Woodlands is like living in a bubble! It reminds me a lot of Lake Tahoe ~ with all the tall pines and the nicely hidden homes. A whole lot warmer, of course!
As of a couple years ago, there was (supposedly) still a custom firearms shop in GBC, where the owner made barrels from blanks.
However, the place was named that because of the gunsmiths that were there at the founding. Check out the Handbook Of Texas.
How do you know he's from Texas?
Our farm is near Naples. We've had rain about five times since May (Daingerfield got rain when we didn't - even though we're only 12 miles away), and our lake is down about four feet under the boat dock. Our neighbor is +/- 60 years old and has lived here all his life. He says he's NEVER seen it so dry. Looks like we're going to make up in a couple of days what we've lacked for five months!
They are 1 or 2 because the C and D columns are after landfall projected time, aren't they?
C FROM 7AM SAT TO 7PM SAT
D FROM 7PM SAT TO 7PM SUN
La Porte issuing mandatory evacuation order with hard curfew until further notice.
Exactly!
When I had to commute to Houston for six months from Arlington...I would always take 287 South and hit I-45 at Ennis...
I loved that drive on 287...and seeing the "town" of Ennis...except on the weekends they had RACES --- sometimes I would not pay attention and get caught in that traffic!
The cone of uncertainty is spread out very wide at those time points, and columns C and D extend out to 7 pm Saturday and 7 pm Sunday. With that being said, the NHC really needs to rethink the wording of that product.
I talked to a friend of mine today who is evacuating up I 45 and she said that they have gone 30 miles in 11 hours,,,but,,,,she also said that now she has a whole new faith in humanity,,,she said that people came and were handing out water and stuff on the side of the road for the slow moving traffic and if someone runs out of gas that people are stopping to help by pulling/towing each other etc,,,,so yee haw Texans! I am so proud,,,,
A bunch of friends hit the highways at 11 am, they have been driven for 12 hrs and have not yet made it out of Houston. I am more worried about them than I am worried about me.
There is an error in the way they are reporting these numbers when the probability is nearly 100%, I believe.
That makes it real hard to interpret some of the other data given, too.
So true. What a shame.
Red Cross opening 35 shelters in South East Texas.
"The town name is derived from its motto, "We shoot straight with you," and its symbol, a rifle."
GBC city hall has a different story, oh well.
That reminds me of the river bridge sign on the way to Austin - "Hollering Woman Creek."
There is a small city in West Texas named Dumas. Phil Harris had a song called "Ding Dong Daddy from Dumas", and more recently I heard one called "I'm Proud to be from Dumas (Pronounced Dum-ass) Texas".
Local Radio seems to be running on rumors...
"We heard from someone, that someone died of heat postration on I-10 west"...
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