National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce
KLCH Reflectivity Radar Image captured at 2:37 AM CDT on September 24, 2005. Hurricane Rita
September 24, 2005

INTRODUCTION

Hurricane Rita made landfall in southwestern Louisiana between Sabine Pass, Texas and Johnson's Bayou, Louisiana early Saturday morning, September 24, 2005. "Rita" was the second major hurricane to strike the Louisiana coast this season ("Katrina" was the first) and the third most intense hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Basin. Another significant hallmark of this event was the mass evacuations prompted by this storm in Texas and Louisisana. It is estimated that up to 2 million residents (most from the Houston/Galveston metro area) evacuated to avoid the effects of the storm. While Rita peaked as a Category 5 hurricane out in the Gulf...she made landfall over Cameron Parrish as a Category 3 hurricane.



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