11pm discussion mentions the 5 word.....

[MGC]

As in Cat-5. Expect Rita to develope dual outflow channels. Cat-5 does now appear to be a possibility. Time to wake Rip Van Winkle along the Texas coast and tell him to evacuate......MGC

[SamSagnella]

I, unfortunately, agree very much with their reasoning, and max winds could exceed 155 at some point. Two category 5 hurricanes traversing the same waters three weeks apart? WTF!?!

[soonertwister]

I've felt that cat 5 wasn't a possibility but a probability since 2PM this afternoon.

Brace yourselves. I don't think that 170 kt is necessarily the upper limit for this storm.

I may be an extreme northern outlier on the intensity of this storm, but my gut really is sending up the alarm.

[SamSagnella]

A 1935-esque event, sooner? into the wrn Gulf coast, of course.

[mtm4319]

The NHC wind probabilities have only a 10% chance for a cat. 5.

[Ixolib]

Depending obviously on where she landfalls, the rapid-response and support systems in place to respond are already over-worked, over-stressed, and under-manned, and now on limited funds. I can't even begin to think of how all the different agencies and insurance carriers will be able to effectively provide the services needed after a cat-5 storm comes ashore. Just thinking of that scenario boggles the mind...

[jrtalon]

Katrina was a Cat-2 when I went to bed one night, I woke up to a 160mph Cat-5. THat better not happen again tonight.

[canegrl04]

I still have a hard time believing Rita could get any stronger than 160mph,but Katrina showed anything can happen in the GOM

[soonertwister]

A 1935-esque event, sooner? into the wrn Gulf coast, of course.

Sam, while my heart says it's highly unlikely, my mind says why not? When catastrophe descends upon us, we have no barometer on how bad things can get.