Secure Zone Safety - Hurricane Rita

Hurricane Rita

The summer of 2005 will always be remembered as the year the U.S. lost its battle to two of the deadliest natural disasters to hit in decades: Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita. Although not as powerful as Katrina (Category 5 upon landfall), Hurricane Rita (Category 4 upon landfall) still made her presence known. She hit parts of Texas, and tackled an already-devastated Louisiana. By the time Hurricane Rita came along, parts of the Gulf states had already been wrecked, and lives lost were already in the hundreds. Rita just added insult to injury, setting back those states in their progress efforts.

Hurricane Rita: Little Sister of Disaster

Known as the little sister of Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Rita definitely made her presence felt when she pounded parts of Texas and Katrina-drenched Louisiana. Not only did she set the rescue efforts back significantly, but she took lives in her own way. Most of Rita's death were prior to the actual hurricane, during the preparation phases. A bus carrying dozens of elderly people caught fire in Texas because of the sweltering heat, killing almost everyone on board. A few people escaped, but the damage was already done. On top of that, gas stations were running out of fuel just as quickly as motorists, stuck in 15-hour traffic lines, ran out of fuel.

Dehydration, malnutrition, lack of fuel were all the issues facing these people as the storm rapidly headed their way, promising nothing but death and destruction. Fortunately, however, despite the damage, hardly any lives were lost during the actual storm. In a weird way of looking at it, Hurricane Rita had mercy on these states, re-damaging the already damaged.

When it comes to hurricane safety, you can never be too careful or too prepared. Why risk your life. You can't fight Mother Nature.