Josh Morgerman
EF4
The Rita report was just published. Check it out:
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/TCR-AL182005_Rita.pdf
I had heard rumors-- and I emphasize rumors-- they there were thinking of downgrading the TX/LA landfall intensity to Cat 2. They kept it at Cat 3, although the final estimate (100 kt) is a little lower than what was believed at the time. Rita's radar presentation at landfall was not impressive-- with the whole S half of the eyewall wide open-- so it doesn't surprise me that the landfall-intensity estimate was reduced.
Key points:
* Maximum intensity: 155 kt/895 mb-- Cat 5. This makes it the 4th-deepest hurricane ever observed in the Atlantic. As pointed out by Jeff Snyder in a related thread, note that this maximum-intensity estimate has been increased slightly (with lower pressure and higher winds) in post-analysis.
* TX/LA landfall intensity: 100 kt/937 mb-- Cat 3.
* Maximum official surface-wind reading on land: 71 kt with a gust to 86 kt at Sabine River, TX. (However, a FCMP tower in Port Arthur, TX, measured 82 kt with a gust to 101 kt.)
* Wind effects: Most of SE TX and SW LA experienced Cat 1 conditions. A few areas experienced Cat 2 conditions. Cat 3 conditions were confined to a very small area E of the eye, along the immediate coast of extreme SW LA.
* Storm surge: As with Katrina, storm surge flooding was more impressive than the winds-- with large areas of SW LA flooded well inland. The surge in Cameron, LA, apparently reached 15 ft.
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/TCR-AL182005_Rita.pdf
I had heard rumors-- and I emphasize rumors-- they there were thinking of downgrading the TX/LA landfall intensity to Cat 2. They kept it at Cat 3, although the final estimate (100 kt) is a little lower than what was believed at the time. Rita's radar presentation at landfall was not impressive-- with the whole S half of the eyewall wide open-- so it doesn't surprise me that the landfall-intensity estimate was reduced.
Key points:
* Maximum intensity: 155 kt/895 mb-- Cat 5. This makes it the 4th-deepest hurricane ever observed in the Atlantic. As pointed out by Jeff Snyder in a related thread, note that this maximum-intensity estimate has been increased slightly (with lower pressure and higher winds) in post-analysis.
* TX/LA landfall intensity: 100 kt/937 mb-- Cat 3.
* Maximum official surface-wind reading on land: 71 kt with a gust to 86 kt at Sabine River, TX. (However, a FCMP tower in Port Arthur, TX, measured 82 kt with a gust to 101 kt.)
* Wind effects: Most of SE TX and SW LA experienced Cat 1 conditions. A few areas experienced Cat 2 conditions. Cat 3 conditions were confined to a very small area E of the eye, along the immediate coast of extreme SW LA.
* Storm surge: As with Katrina, storm surge flooding was more impressive than the winds-- with large areas of SW LA flooded well inland. The surge in Cameron, LA, apparently reached 15 ft.
