Holy Fool: Hurricane Rita Storms the Florida Keys

Is it the end of hurricane season yet? That's probably a question many storm-weary survivors of Katrina ask. Unfortunately, Rita says no. The Gulf may feel her wrath after she's done with the Keys: A Louisiana official warned that levees in New Orleans, where hundreds died in Katrina's floods, would fail again if the city were smashed by a new storm surge. Mayor Ray Nagin suspended plans for some residents to return to the sodden city.

Oil companies only starting to recover from Katrina evacuated Gulf oil rigs. Private forecasters said there was a 40 per cent chance that damaging hurricane-force winds would directly affect major Gulf energy production areas.

Rita was the 17th tropical storm of an exceptionally busy Atlantic hurricane season and became a hurricane when its sustained winds strengthened to 119kph.

It was expected to become a major hurricane with sustained winds of at least 178kph, said the US National Hurricane Centre in Miami.

Rita's centre was about 160km east-southeast of Key West, Florida. The storm was headed west-northwest at about 24kph and was expected to reach the Texas Gulf Coast later in the week, forecasters said.
At least Mayor Nagin had the sense to prevent New Orleaneans from returning in time to relive their Katrina nightmare! Not that opening NO in the first place made sense. Does he really believe he can salvage his political career by expediting the survivors' return? Please. Enough New Orleaneans know how well he served them. He's done.

Keep the brave residents of the Gulf Coast in your prayers. Especially the residents of Galveston, Texas, where Rita may strike.

Update: She's a Catagory 2 now. And she's not done yet:

Rita lashed the Florida Keys on Tuesday and headed into the Gulf of Mexico, where it was expected to strengthen into another blockbuster storm threatening Texas and Louisiana.
Thousands of people were evacuated from the Keys and low-lying areas of northern Cuba. On the far side of the Gulf of Mexico in Texas, Galveston started evacuations and officials made plans to move refugees from Hurricane Katrina who had been housed in the Houston area to Arkansas.

Forecasters said Rita could intensify in the Gulf of Mexico into a Category 4 storm with winds of at least 131 mph. The most likely destination by week's end was Texas, although Louisiana and northern Mexico were possibilities, according to the hurricane center.

If that wasn't bad enough, AP writer Michelle Spitzer saves the worst for last: the answer to everyone's question.