They aren't fucking around--weather advisory for my county issued today

[Horse with no Name]

We are on Oklahoma border.


Special Weather Statement from the National Weather Service:

CAMP-FRANKLIN-MORRIS-RED RIVER TX-TITUS- 500 PM CDT WED SEP 21 2005

...DANGEROUS HURRICANE RITA EXPECTED TO IMPACT MUCH OF NORTHEAST TEXAS...

HURRICANE RITA IS EXPECTED TO MAKE LANDFALL SATURDAY MORNING AS A MAJOR HURRICANE SOMEWHERE ALONG THE MIDDLE TEXAS COAST. AFTER RITA MAKES LANDFALL...A NORTHWEST TRACK IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS TO JUST WEST OF COLLEGE STATION THROUGH MUCH OF SATURDAY...BEFORE TAKING A NORTHWARD TURN LATE SATURDAY OR EARLY SUNDAY INTO NORTH TEXAS NEAR THE DALLAS FORT WORTH METROPLEX. THE NORTHWARD PROGRESS OF THIS SYSTEM MAY SLOW DURING THE LATTER PART OF THE WEEKEND...RESULTING IN A PROLONGED PERIOD OF STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAINFALL OVER MUCH OF EAST TEXAS. SUSTAINED WINDS OF 20 TO 30 MPH...WITH HIGHER GUSTS...ARE EXPECTED ALONG AND WEST OF AN AVERY TO DAINGERFIELD LINE. THESE WINDS WILL BEGIN TO INCREASE SATURDAY NIGHT SEVERAL HOURS AFTER RITA MAKES LANDFALL...AND THE THREAT FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CIRCULATION OF THE HURRICANE WILL BEGIN TO INCREASE AS WELL. PERIODS OF HEAVY RAINFALL WILL ACCOMPANY RITA AS THIS STORM MOVES INLAND AND GRADUALLY WEAKENS...WITH TOTALS BETWEEN THREE AND FIVE INCHES...WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE. HOWEVER...THERE APPEARS TO BE INDICATIONS THAT THE REMNANTS OF RITA MAY REMAIN OVER NORTH TEXAS THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK...WHICH COULD RESULT IN MUCH HIGHER RAINFALL TOTALS. DUE TO THE CURRENT DROUGHT CONDITIONS ACROSS MUCH OF NORTHEAST TEXAS...THIS RAINFALL WOULD BE VERY BENEFICIAL...BUT FLOODING PROBLEMS WILL DEVELOP SHOULD THE RAIN FALL TOO QUICKLY FOR THE GROUND TO ABSORB...RESULTING IN RAPID RUNOFF.

LOCAL EMERGENCY MANAGERS AND CITY PLANNERS SHOULD CLOSELY MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF THIS SYSTEM...AS SLIGHT ADJUSTMENTS TO THE TRACK OF HURRICANE RITA COULD HAVE SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS ON NORTHEAST TEXAS.

[Helga Scow Stern]

1. Stay safe, Horse.

[Horse with no Name]

2. We'll be fine

Even though I live along the Red River in tornado alley, they generally miss our town. We'll fare much better than many.
I plan on taking pics as it is moving through and posting them here though.

[Catherine Vincent]

3. Hi there!

Maybe we should cancel OKCity and head to Little Rock. We'll figure it out tomorrow.

[Horse with no Name]

4. I think you will be okay in OKC

But tomorrow would be a better time to decide.
:hug:

[rainbow4321]

5. That warning may be due to this:

One of the computer models shows this:

http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/show.html

The latest runs of two key computer models, the GFS and GFDL, now indicate that the trough of low pressure that was expected to pick up Rita and pull her rapidly northward through Texas will not be strong enough to do so. Instead, these models forecast that Rita will make landfall near Galveston, penetrate inland between 50 and 200 miles, then slowly drift southwestward for nearly two days, as a high pressure ridge will build in to her north. Finally, a second trough is forecast to lift Rita out of Texas on Tuesday. If this scenario develops, not only will the coast receive catastrophic damage from the storm surge, but interior Texas, including the Dallas/Fort Worth area, might see a deluge of 15 - 30 inches of rain. A huge portion of Texas would be a disaster area. We'll have to wait for the next set of model runs due out by tomorrow morning to know better.