Hurricane Rita: A Comparison of Winds and Storm Surge
 

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The South-Central Louisiana graphic shows the chronology of the storm surge and surface winds as depicted by surface observations and river readings. Northeast winds prevailed before landfall with widespread tropical storm force winds (39-73 mph) along the immediate coast before noon on Friday, September 23rd.  At this time, strong northeast winds helped to keep the river levels steady with no appreciable storm surge. By 5 PM, near hurricane force winds (74 mph or greater) could be found over Marsh Island. Tropical Storm force winds continued to pound the coast through the night. Storm surge waters reached several of the river gages just about the time when the wind direction shifted to the southeast.  Storm surge waters 10-15 feet MSL impacted south central Louisiana coastal parishes. Actual flood levels can be obtained by subtracting property elevations above sea level.