Hurricane Katrina, Sunday 7 am EDT

This is the current satellite image from the NOAA website, as of Sunday, August 28, 7am EDT. Early this morning the storm was upgraded to a category 5 on a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the strongest. Currently the winds reach 160 mph (260 kmh), with gusts up to 195 mph.

The predicted landfall will be around New Orleans on Monday. The city is currently being evacuated, as it lays several feet under sea level. Residents who stay, are advised to seek shelter in at least the third floor of buildings. Expected rainfall from the very slow moving storm is 15 inches, the storm surge from the Gulf of Mexico is expected to reach 25 feet (8m).

In SW Florida life is normal again. The sun is shining and people are playing golf as usual. We hold our breath and pray for everybody in the path of monster storm Katrina. Stay safe, y'all!

(For locations see notes on the previous satellite image)