Hurricane Rita Live Thread, Part V

NHC - NOAA ^ | 22 September 2005 | NHC - NOAA

[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

[anton]

Ooops, Sorry


HURRICANE RITA PROBABILITIES NUMBER 21
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL
4 PM CDT THU SEP 22 2005

PROBABILITIES FOR GUIDANCE IN HURRICANE PROTECTION
PLANNING BY GOVERNMENT AND DISASTER OFFICIALS

AT 4 PM CDT...2100Z...THE CENTER OF RITA WAS LOCATED NEAR
LATITUDE 25.8 NORTH...LONGITUDE 89.5 WEST

CHANCES OF CENTER OF THE HURRICANE PASSING WITHIN 65 NAUTICAL MILES
OF LISTED LOCATIONS THROUGH 1PM CDT SUN SEP 25 2005

LOCATION A B C D E
GALVESTON TX 8 17 1 X 26
FREEPORT TX 7 16 1 X 24
PORT O CONNOR TX 4 11 2 1 18
PANAMA CITY FL X X X 2 2
CORPUSCHRISTI TX 1 5 1 2 9
PENSACOLA FL X X 1 3 4
BROWNSVILLE TX X X X 2 2
MOBILE AL X 1 2 4 7
GULFPORT MS X 3 3 3 9
BURAS LA 5 6 1 2 14
NEW ORLEANS LA 3 8 2 2 15
NEW IBERIA LA 6 13 1 1 21
PORT ARTHUR TX 4 20 1 1 26
COLUMN DEFINITION PROBABILITIES IN PERCENT
A IS PROBABILITY FROM NOW TO 1PM FRI
FOLLOWING ARE ADDITIONAL PROBABILITIES
B FROM 1PM FRI TO 1AM SAT
C FROM 1AM SAT TO 1PM SAT
D FROM 1PM SAT TO 1PM SUN
E IS TOTAL PROBABILITY FROM NOW TO 1PM SUN
X MEANS LESS THAN ONE PERCENT

FORECASTER AVILA

[BIGLOOK]

Gotta know, Hilltop. What are fenders?

I've eaten most everything, most of the time because no one bothered to tell me what it was.

[Flyer]

I have no idea how close we are in age, so I won't ask if you went to Bellaire High.

[steveegg]

I don't dance :-)

[Vintage1]

Far beit for the MSM to play up the contrast in behavior between the TX evacuees and NOLAs. It seems so obvious to me.

[the Deejay]

I swear being a grammy has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life!!

Ain't it the truth!

My mother tried to tell me what it would be like for me when I became a grandma, but I thought she didn't know what she was talking about. (She knew...she knew.)

[NautiNurse]

That second webcam has heavy two-way traffic. I hope that's not a whole lot of folks giving up on the evac and going home.

[Calpernia]

Your excerpts were explicit. :)

I've been through hurricanes. They are the most exciting and the most frightening force to be a part of. And yes, I mean be a part of. You become part of the storm.

[CajunConservative]

You have that right. I made great time getting to my sister's house. I went on the frontage road most of the way. I watched the gridlock on the interstate while I zipped on by.

[blam]

"I wish I could think of a word for this kind of man, he just makes me sick."

I think he and Condit were DC buddies.

[Tall_Texan]

bump

[Sender]

Until recently, Ford was planning the Extreme, the Expulsion and the Exxonvaldez. Now they are looking real hard at the Ka.

[SouthTexas]

That is correct, most mandatory evacs have been lifted. A voluntary is still in effect. We do not have near the traffic down here as the Houston area, but the fuel issue is the same, I.E. there ain't none!

[mhking]

(damn, but that's a long day).

Transitioning from days to nights (plus taking the baby to nursery school).

[queenkathy]

Ya, especially when all 10 g/kids want to stay the night, the same night...

[cspackler]

My parents left Victoria at about 10:00 this morning, they just called from my uncle's house in Kilgore after 9:00. It's usually a 6 to 7 hour drive, took them about 11 this time. No big panic though, didn't have too much trouble getting gas. Of course, my father is smart enough to avoid the big towns and stick to the rural highways.

[CindyDawg]

I see that. It's got her back over water too. I fear of one going down the coast. That Nogap is a fickle little sucker though, isn't it? He's been all over the map. mexico-La-Mexico-La.....

[uglybiker]

My folks are in Daingerfield (s. of Mt. Pleasant). Right now they can't even use their boat dock because the lake is down so far.

But all that's gonna change here real soon!

[sinkspur]

The main highway is moving quite nicely in those pictures. I don't get why the feeder on the one side is so congested. Is I-45 contraflowed there?

[maeng]

I am just waiting for someone in the media to start harping that Texas is in "ready mode" more than Louisiana because of course that is Bush's home state!! May have already happened and I missed it.