Did you see Galveston broke its 1954 record high today?
Might that suggest the high is still over Galveston?
Possibly a little warmer water at landfall? :(
I am in the Cypress, TX (NW Houston) area. I have been here most of my life. I was here during Alicia and had a lot of tree damage.
I could have said this was going to be a category 5 quickly because I have never felt heat like this the past 4 weeks (even for Houston). It was over 100 degrees here in Houston. It is like gasoline in the gulf right now.
Being a Cat 5 and having 4 children with 1 on the way, we will probably be leaving early tomorrow morning for Boerne. I don't know if our house can take 110 mph winds and I am not going to find out.
If the path changes overnight we might stay.
We went to Wal Mart today and got $350 worth of groceries. I waited in line 2 hours for water and luckily got some. Some people were waiting for 4 hours for water. I went to 3 gas stations for gas without luck but finally found one. No propane tanks available and no ice.
Pray that Houston/Galveston will not get hit. Major population base and even Wall Street understands if we get hit, it will kill our economy. Houston is a major hub for our economy and the energy capital of the world.
It was VERY hot in that area before the 1900 storm. I mentioned this to Dog Gone the other day.
The high pressure is quite strong, as is the anticyclone over the system.. lots of latent heat.
The water is pretty warm all the way to the coast.. not as warm as parts of the loop, but warm enough to sustain a cat4/5. If she slowed, she might upwell.. I don't think she'll slow much.