000 WTUS84 KCRP 212319 HLSCRP GMZ230-235-250-255-270-275-TXZ231>234-241>247-220400- HURRICANE LOCAL STATEMENT...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX 609 PM CDT WED SEP 21 2005 ...EXTREMELY DANGEROUS RITA NOW A CATEGORY FIVE HURRICANE... ...THIS STATEMENT APPLIES TO THE RESIDENTS OF CALHOUN...NUECES...SAN PATRICIO...ARANSAS...REFUGIO...GOLIAD...VICTORIA...LIVE OAK...JIM WELLS AND KLEBERG COUNTIES... ...WATCHES/WARNINGS IN EFFECT... A HURRICANE WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THE TEXAS COAST FROM PORT MANSFIELD TO SABINE PASS INCLUDING ALL OF THE MIDDLE TEXAS COAST FROM BAFFIN BAY TO PORT O'CONNOR. THE HURRICANE WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR KLEBERG...NUECES...SAN PATRICIO...ARANSAS...REFUGIO AND CALHOUN COUNTIES. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH WILL LIKELY BE ISSUED FOR PORTIONS OF THE COASTAL BEND AND MID COAST REGION THURSDAY. ...STORM INFORMATION... .LOCATION... AT 4 PM CDT...THE CENTER OF HURRICANE RITA WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 24.4 NORTH...LONGITUDE 86.8 WEST...OR ABOUT 700 MILES EAST-SOUTHEAST OF CORPUS CHRISTI. .MOVEMENT... HURRICANE RITA WAS MOVING WEST AT 13 MPH. THIS MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS. RITA IS EXPECTED TO MAKE A GRADUAL TURN TO THE NORTHWEST AFTER THURSDAY EVENING. .INTENSITY... MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS HAVE INCREASED TO NEAR 165 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS. RITA IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS CATEGORY FIVE HURRICANE. SOME FLUCTUATIONS IN INTENSITY ARE LIKELY DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS. ...PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... .EVACUATION INFORMATION... UPDATED FOR ADDITIONAL EVACUATION INFORMATION FOR NUECES COUNTY...THE MAYOR OF PORT ARANSAS HAS DECLARED A MANDATORY EVACUATION OF PORT ARANSAS WITH RESIDENTS EXPECTED TO BE EVACUATED BY NOON THURSDAY. THE MAYOR OF CORPUS CHRISTI HAS ISSUED A MANDATORY EVACUATION FOR ALL OF CORPUS CHRISTI. THIS INCLUDES FLOUR BLUFF...MUSTANG ISLAND...NORTH PADRE ISLAND AND CORPUS CHRISTI BEACH. MANDATORY EVACUATIONS HAVE BEEN DECLARED FOR THE COUNTIES OF SAN PATRICIO...CALHOUN...REFUGIO...ARANSAS AND KLEBERG. THE PADRE ISLAND NATIONAL SEASHORE PARK WILL BE CLOSED ON THURSDAY. FOR GOLIAD COUNTY...VOLUNTARY EVACUATIONS ARE IN PLACE FOR THE COUNTY. A MANDATORY EVACUATION WILL BE DECLARED AT 10 AM THURSDAY MORNING. ALL RESIDENTS OF THE MIDDLE TEXAS COAST SHOULD BE IN THE PROCESS OF COMPLETING THEIR PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY. .SCHOOL AND GOVERNMENT CLOSINGS... ALL INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICTS FROM THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES HAVE CANCELED CLASSES FOR THURSDAY AND FRIDAY...NUECES...SAN PATRICIO...REFUGIO...ARANSAS...CALHOUN AND VICTORIA. GOLIAD INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT WILL HAVE CLASSES UNTIL 1130 AM THURSDAY AND BE CLOSED ON FRIDAY. TEXAS A&M CORPUS CHRISTI HAS CANCELED CLASSES FOR THURSDAY AND FRIDAY WITH STUDENTS BEING EVACUATED TO TEXAS A&M INTERNATIONAL IN LAREDO. CLASSES HAVE BEEN CANCELED FROM THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY FOR DEL MAR COLLEGE...COASTAL BEND COLLEGE...VICTORIA COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON IN VICTORIA. THE COMMANDER OF NAVY REGION SOUTH HAS ORDERED EVACUATION OF NAVAL STATION INGLESIDE AND NAVAL AIR STATIONS CORPUS CHRISTI AND KINGSVILLE. ...STORM SURGE FLOOD AND STORM TIDE IMPACTS... TIDE LEVELS ARE CURRENTLY NEAR NORMAL ALONG THE MIDDLE TEXAS COAST. HIGH SWELLS FROM HURRICANE RITA WILL AFFECT THE COAST BY THURSDAY. TIDE LEVELS ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE TO 3 FEET ABOVE MEAN SEA LEVEL ALONG AREA BEACHES NEAR ASTRONOMICAL HIGH TIDE BY LATE THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THIS WILL CAUSE WATER TO FLOOD BEACHES AND BEACH ACCESS ROADS. IN ADDITION...HIGH SWELLS WILL PRODUCE A GREATER RISK OF DANGEROUS RIP CURRENTS ALONG AREA BEACHES AND SWIMMING IS NOT RECOMMENDED AFTER TONIGHT. MORE SIGNIFICANT COASTAL FLOODING IS EXPECTED FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY MORNING AS WATER LEVELS CONTINUE TO RISE WITH THE APPROACH OF HURRICANE RITA. ...WIND IMPACTS... TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO REACH THE MIDDLE TEXAS COAST FRIDAY MORNING. WINDS WILL GRADUALLY INCREASE TO HURRICANE FORCE BY FRIDAY EVENING. THE NEXT HURRICANE STATEMENT WILL BE ISSUED AROUND 10 PM. $$ TMT/TE