Fergie's Tech Blog

Rita strengthens to a Category 2 hurricane

Rita strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane Tuesday with top sustained winds that reached 100 mph, threatening the island chain with a storm surge of up to 6 feet and sparking fears the storm could eventually bring new misery to the Gulf Coast.

Earlier Tuesday Rita had gone from a tropical storm to a Category 1 hurricane with winds of 85 mph, said meteorologist Michelle Mainelli at the National Hurricane Center in Miami. She said the wind speed was confirmed by data collected by a reconnaissance plane sent into the storm.

Thousands of residents and tourists had fled the low-lying Keys island chain, where forecasters said Rita could dump up to 8 inches of rain, down from earlier forecasts of up to 15 inches.

Rita promised to gain more strength as it crossed the warm Gulf of Mexico for a weekend landfall, most likely in Texas although Louisiana could end up in its path.

posted by Fergie @ 9/20/2005 11:03:00 AM