Hurricane Katrina, Live Thread, Part V

NHC - NOAA ^ | 28 August 2005 | NHC - NOAA

[NautiNurse]

Extremely dangerous Hurricane Katrina is bearing down on the North Central Gulf of Mexico. Mandatory evacuation of New Orleans is finally underway. Louisiana officials are warning of complete failure to levy systems, and pleading with people to leave low lying areas. For those who choose to stay, they are recommending picks and axes for breaking through to access their roofs during flooding.

Due to the size and intensity of this storm, all interests in the North Gulf of Mexico should be rushing hurricane preparations to completion.

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

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:
copy/paste into player:

http://www.wjbo.com - BR radio station. Callers calling in and describing traffic etc.
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

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

[SunnySide]

Shep said a bar on Bourbon St is packed"

Are you kidding me? Those people have a death wish...


Sounds like the foriegn vacationers who are stranded there. Poor folks.

[Conservababe]

Instead of having counties, La has parishes.

[Howlin]

He always sounds so mad.

[mware]

The guy Shep is interviewing (Sam) should work for the National Weather Service.

He knows that the storm will weaken to a 3 or possibly a 4 just before it hits.

Meanwhile, the plane that flew through the eye said it has picked up to 185 mph and the water temp off NO is 90 degrees. The warmest on record is 92.

[Torie]

What channel is Shep on?

[Fudd Fan]

Moose can sit on him.

[Tarpon]

They do the same thing in Florida as they do in LA -- They dig deep ditches, 20 foot deep, 50 foot wide on both sides of the roads and use that material to build up the roadway. Sometimes they have bridges for the water to flow under, sometimes they causeway an area if the water flow is too great. In Florida, Alligator alley is the most famous, otherwise known as I-75. If you go off the road, as many do from time to time, you run the risk of drowning. The road from the back of Marco Is is that way, it's two lane. US 41 to Miami is built this way and it is no place to be in hurricane weather.

If you hit a gator, especially at high speed, you are in big trouble, fortunately they mostly stay off the roads.

What's worse is turtles, they walk out on the road regularly and you hit them at high speed because they are hard to spot, especially at night. That is no fun. Snakes, you just run over them :)

[spycatcher]

The Super Dome was built knowing that a CAT 5 storm would come. Almost all commercial building such as those in the downtown area (not the quarter) will not even notice a CAT 5 storm. A few windows will break, but thats all. Have you ever hear of the business section of Miami having any trouble with storms?

You're joking right?

[bikepacker67]

With a storm surge of 25 ~ 30 ft (plus all the rain).... They're screwed.

This is the one we ALL knew would take out N.O. eventually.

[GOP_Proud]

People had lotsa time to get out. The warning has been there for days. If I lived below sea level and there was ANY chance it was headed toward me, I'd already have been in Illinois Friday.

And, yes, I'd do it everytime.

I live in a mobile home. We've had thunderstorms that I have left home for. I always wind up at my sister's brick house 3 miles away.

[daviddennis]

Even a really bad earthquake lasts under a minute and then it's done. Last major earthquake in California destroyed part of a freeway and a few cheesy apartment buildings. I think about ten single family homes that were on hills were destroyed in landslides caused by the quake.

Everything else was pretty much untouched. If you were in a single family home of any description the odds were about one in a million against problems.

From what I can see, this disaster's about to wipe out a city. I'll take earthquakes any day.

D

[samantha]

What about the snakes,and gators? I can just see them roaming I-10 now. My satellite has been out for 10 mins already, 100 miles inland from The Fla West Central Coast and we are getting a Hurricane influenced wicked T storm.

[pax_et_bonum]

Allow me to finsh your sentence..

That's Sam the Idiot who's at a bar in New Orleans and being interviewed by Shepard SmithTHE IDIOT!

I stand corrected!

[SauronOfMordor]

Wonder when the news stations will start pulling their reporters and camera people from the scene. At this point, they won't be able to evacuate the city

The major news sites will have helicopters on charter for stuff like this

[Gabz]

Guess the question is that they are referring to areas as parishes in New Orleans. Is that in lieu of counties?

Yes.

[steveegg]

Question..is there a theoretical, or real limit to how low barometric pressure can fall?

I wish I knew what it was, but I'd strongly suspect there is one, and that it isn't much beyond what Gilbert hit. Of course, at that point, it's only a matter of scientific note, not one of practical note.

[theophilusscribe]

The guy that was speaking was a local who is staying. He said the levies could handle a Cat. 3, but Katrina is already at 5. The guy said it would slow down, but that is hardly likely with the water getting warmer as Katrina heads inland . . .

[hole_n_one]

Dead men idiots drinking!

[GOP_Proud]

I'm Baptist. We say "area".

[Muzzle_em]

"The mayor said the SuperDome can stand 200 mh winds."

Even if that is true, can it withstand hits by the LARGE debris traveling in that wind?

It is truly heartbreaking to watch this whole thing play out. I've not even turned on the news because I KNOW the newscasters will just be SALIVATING, as they deliver every juicy tidbit of the destruction as it unfolds, thinking of how high their ratings are as Americans watch for the entertainment value. I SINCERELY PRAY it turns and goes somewhere less vulnerable.