Rita has now become a Category 5 hurricane. She will probably make landfall as a strong category 4 hurricane as far as winds go. One of the important aspects to remember is that hurricane categories only measure wind speed, and as Katrina showed storm surge can very greatly within categories. The key here is the barometric pressure within the eye of the storm.
The current barometric pressure in Rita's eye is 920 millibars. Katrina's low barometric pressure was 902 millibars. Rita should come close to matching that before weakening slightly as it enters the cooler waters near the Texas coast. Expect a huge storm surge.
The enormous problem with this storm is three fold. Number one, quite a few oil rigs in the gulf that were missed by Katrina will be damaged by Rita. Two, the combination of Katrina and Rita have the potential of taking 25% of our refining capacity off line near term. Look for $3.50 gas prices minimum after Rita makes landfall. Three, the port of Houston is the second largest port in the world in tonnage. It will also be down near term.
Fill your gas tank before this hurricane makes landfall. I'll keep a watch on wholesale gasoline prices here and let you know any coming trends.
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