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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
Not that I know of. You get that generator working?
Thanks.
MSNBC is all worried that the good peole on NO don't even know there's a hurricane coming.
Carla hit in '61. I used to go to Crystal Beach in '80.
I dont know if Carla destroyed that highway that ran from High Island to Sabine Pass. Was there ever another storm that struck the coast in between Carla ('61) and Alicia ('83)?
I've never been in the gunsights of a hurricane this big. Few people have. Now there are about 4.5 million more people who are sharing that experience right now.
My fascination with hurricanes has a very personal element to it at the moment. I look at that storm and am in awe of how quickly it developed.
The NHC has it forecast as a Cat 1 storm over Austin. That's in the hills. That's quite some distance from the coast.
People have fled Houston to Austin and they're going to be nailed there. That's how big Rita is. Yikes.
One trouble with Cat 1's is that they can go rapidly to higher categories.
So why doesn't PMSNBC tell them?
McAllen is approximately 50 miles west of Brownsville. Brownsville - especially Port Isabel - is more vulnerable.
Celia really trashed Corpus Christi in 1970; it was a very small storm, sort of a junior-grade proto-Andrew in that there was very little surge but extreme wind damage. Then it set a US rainfall record inland, I think.
^5.
LOL---When my husband and I decided to move to Arlington, the kids came with us to drive around and figure out what part of Arlington we wanted to live in....we got lost.
To make a very long story short...we ended up in what is now the bottom of Joe Pool Lake...and they were blowing up areas very near where we were...had to be shown the way out by the construction guys...(embarrassing, huh?)
I do believe Joe Pool filled up a lot faster than they thought it would also...but NOT before we got out.
No power in most areas...that is why :)
About 60 miles west.
The area is under a hurricane watch and that should be the operative word for preparations.
Good. I would hope the staff has taken precautions for power outages and such. I'll give his aunt a call here in a few minutes to see what she can tell me. Thanks for your reply.
I told Oran that if needed, we have an extra air mattress for the floor for them, even though we really don't have a lot of extra space.
Waves will go over the flood wall in Galveston. Eye wall is 70 miles wide. Wind is 190.
I understand!!!!!!
There really needs to be a tag to identify rhetorical questions :-)
I'm referring to a Cat 1 over the Dallas area.
I was mistaken on the rainfall, some other storm I was thinking of than Celia.
"NOLA is not in play."
I can take that to the bank coming from you. Have you ever seen such rapid intensification from TS to Cat 5?
Do you see any evidence of that weakness in the high or its shift east that is to allow Rita to go north forming yet?
What is your latest forecast? :)
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