Great. This is just what we need.
Rita, which strengthened Sunday into a tropical storm, had sustained wind of 65 mph by late morning, up from 60 mph earlier in the day, and could be a Category 1 hurricane by the time it passes the Keys, the National Hurricane Center said.
By the weekend, computer models project that it could be in the northwest Gulf of Mexico near Mexico or Texas, but people in areas ravaged by Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana were warned it also could veer in their direction. Katrina crossed South Florida into the Gulf last month, killing 11 people, before it turned northward to Louisiana and Mississippi.
“This is something everyone should be paying attention to,” said Daniel Brown, a hurricane center meteorologist.
If you really want to worry yourself sick, read SciGuy. For now, hope like heck this storm doesn’t build up like Katrina did.
UPDATE: This is pretty scary, too.
We’ve been thinking about where we’ll move once we’ve decided we can’t take another Houston summer (which may be only one more summer)…and the more I’m looking at it, the more I’m thinking that the most important attribute of our destination will be…very low historical risk of natural disasters.
From earthquake country to hurricane central, I’m ready for a little more uneventfulness from Mother Nature.
Well, from what I understand, Katrina stirred up enough cold water that it’s unlikely Katrina will build up past Cat 3. Of course, I say that from the comfort of Deer Park, in a home that stayed dry during Allison.
My worries are spawned tornadoes and wind-blown debris, not flooding or storm surges.
Still, we can hope passage over Florida disorganizes it, making it even less likely to hit Cat 4 or higher.
Rita’s comin’ to texas, folks
Here are some graphics from NOAA which should be automatically updated with the latest information. Reloading the URL to this post will give you the most recent version.
Actually, I heard today that Katrina had stirred up cold surface water, but since enough time has passed, it probably won’t be a factor for Rita.
I have said all year long that this would be the year we would get a hurricane. We are about due for one, and … well, I just hope it doesn’t come ruin my birthday weekend. I’ll be drinking ‘ritas then, but I don’t want to be dealing with a big hurricane Rita! (Did you get the Evite? Hope you guys can make it!)
Not so lovely Rita
Not so lovely Rita