Gulf Coast Disaster
It has been 48 hours since hurricane Katrina
hit the Gulf Coast of the USA near New Orleans. Early
reports indicated that Biloxi and Gulfport in Mississippi
took the brunt of the storm and suffered the most immediate
damage. At first, it appeared that the city of New Orleans
had been spared the worst of the devastation. We are now
learning the full extent of the damage and it is much
worse than anyone expected. Interstate highway 10 that
follows the Gulf Coast from Texas to Florida is closed
through most of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Police
and National Guard troops have closed many areas in the
southern parts of these states as disaster relief efforts
continue. If you must drive through this area, follow
route 20 about 100 miles to the north. |
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Hurricane Katrina
Katrina began as a tropical depression in the
South Atlantic Ocean about one week ago. As it headed
westward, it grew in intensity until it reached a category
three hurricane with sustained winds in excess of 110
mph (180 km/hr). It lost some of that strength before
it reached Florida and lost more as it crossed the southern
tip of the penninsula. Katrina caused only moderate damage
to Miami, Fort Lauderdale and the Florida Keys. When it
emerged from the western coast of Florida and entered
the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, it rapidly regined
its strength and quickly reached the intensity of a category
five super huricane with sustained winds in excess of
156 mpg (260 km/hr)
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Blistering Heat
2005 is continuing to be a record setting year for weather
phenomena in the USA. We began the year with the end of
a years-long drought in the southwest and some of the
highest rates of rainfall and snowfall ever recorded in
those areas. This record-setting winter precipitation
created some of the best skiing in the mountains and the
greatest bloom of desert flora in many generations.In
the spring, tourist flocked to the deserts of California,
Arizona and Utah to see the glorius display of desert
wildflowers. They went to Death Valley to see the forbidding
desert turned into a flower garden. Now, folks are escaping
the deserts to find relief from the overbearing heat.
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