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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
...You know if China wanted to take Taiwan.... Right now would be a good move...
--I think they'll wait until autumn 2008, just after they host the Olympics.
It's not the first time.
wonder if they started evacuating the hospitals like MD Anderson???
Nice of them to be so concerned about Texas after Houston welcomed so many of the N.O. evacuees in to their city.
Cat 5 per Weather Channel
Post your offer here:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1488829/posts?page=1
Your place sounds nice!
LOL Could be worse. On a thread yesterday they were talking about the numbers dead - I jumped in asking how many drowned versus had been murdered. They clued me in - they were talking about Iraq. Note to self: don't drink wine before posting on FR.
Johnson Space Center
000
WTNT63 KNHC 211955
TCUAT3
HURRICANE RITA TROPICAL CYCLONE UPDATE
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL
255 PM CDT WED SEP 21 2005
DATA FROM RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT INDICATE THAT RITA HAS REACHED
CATEGORY FIVE INTENSITY WITH ESTIMATED MAXIMUM SUSTAINED SURFACE
WINDS OF 165 MPH. THIS WILL BE REFLECTED IN THE 4 PM CDT ADVISORY.
FORECASTER AVILA
$$
NHC has just made it officially Cat 5. Call me conservative. I like that.
[[On an unrelated note, the northward jog I saw on the last few satellite frames of Rita is getting more pronounced now.]]
The local meteorologists at KPLC out of Lake Charles, LA agree.
""Okay folks… I am going out on a limb here at 2:45 pm. We Curtis, Wade, and I think from the satellite image that the storm is now moving west-northwest. Thats not good news. Its alittle north of the current focecast track. Not sure yet what the National Hurricane Center thinks of this, no word from them. We are waiting for the official new advisory at 4 pm. I bet it will be changed to west-northwest and somewhat slow in speed too. Be back sooon with more. Mike Griffin…""
http://www.kplctv.com/Global/link.asp?L=159592&nav=menu66_3
Breaking per FOX- officially a Cat 5- 165 mph
Looks to me like the high pressure ridge keeping the storm from traveling more north has passed. Open season.
http://www.woai.com/
(San Antonio Clear Channel Station)
I'll say it once again; hard as it may sound, I'm sick of hearing about NO and Katrina.
Katrina was NOT the first ever hurricane to hit this country and the rest of us have managed to SURVIVE for decades without losing our minds in THREE DANG DAYS.
And to the reporters out there who may be lurking: No, Texas is NOT preparing now "in light of what happened in New Orleans." They are doing it because that is what we ALL do every single time, you dolts.
Dang....I haven't heard that! I figure on losing power. We do if there is a strong breeze....but 70mph winds??? Yikes is right!
000 WTNT63 KNHC 211955 TCUAT3 HURRICANE RITA TROPICAL CYCLONE UPDATE NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL 255 PM CDT WED SEP 21 2005 DATA FROM RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT INDICATE THAT RITA HAS REACHED CATEGORY FIVE INTENSITY WITH ESTIMATED MAXIMUM SUSTAINED SURFACE WINDS OF 165 MPH. THIS WILL BE REFLECTED IN THE 4 PM CDT ADVISORY. FORECASTER AVILA $$
The Pres is watching out. He is watching the hurricane, but he also has his eye on international situations. Nobody is going to sneak a move.
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