Gimme Shelter

Though weakened to a Category III, Hurricane Rita continued to churn in the Gulf of Mexico, wetting her appetite by pounding the Texas and Louisiana coast with heavy rain and strong wind. The effects of Rita could already be felt more than a hundred miles inland in Louisiana where the winds were blowing the rain horizontally. Rita is expected to devour the town of Port Arthur for breakfast on Saturday morning. Texas officials predict catastrophic damage from to the coastal city of Port Arthur. Rita's storm surge is expected to top out at a height of 18- to 22-foot covering the entire city with water. Hurricane force winds are expected to last approximately 16 hours.

In the DFW metroplex, Rita's effects are already being felt. In south Dallas County, 24 senior citizens fleeing the hurricane died if a fiery bus explosion. Many of the shelters in Dallas and Tarrant counties were already filled or reported that they were filling up quickly.