Port Arthur, Tx, took the initial force of hurricane Rita when it made landfall 


I'm sorry to have to tell Reuters this, but Port Arthur, Texas, is a city with 57,000 people, not a swamp. Reuters reported that Hurricane Rita "crashed directly into lightly populated swamplands at the Texas and Louisiana border, sparing Houston ... but battering the oil city of Beaumont, Texas, and Lake Charles, Louisiana..." What Reuters doesn't seem to realize is that the eye of the hurricane passed over the city of Port Arthur, which lies between Beaumont and Lake Charles, and which took the brunt of the force of the storm. 

Early reports from friends and family indicate that the Port Arthur seawall was not breached and there was no widespread flooding there, except in the low lying areas of downtown and where the oil refineries are located. There are signs of serious wind damage throughout the city.

Aerial photos of the large Central Mall in Port Arthur show major damage to the roof. A friend reported that the First Baptist Church of Nederland was destroyed along with businesses on Nederland Avenue. It is possible that a tornado swept through there. Aerial photos of Jefferson Drive show power poles at a 45ยบ angle. 

Posted: Saturday - September 24, 2005 at 10:31 PM          

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