With a ridge
A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...
of high pressure to its north, the depression tracked westward. Favorable conditions persisted for several days prior to the arrival of the depression, and as such the depression quickly intensified into Tropical Storm Anita. The storm tracked slowly over warm water temperatures, and throughout its duration it was embedded within warm, moist tropical air; Anita rapidly organized and attained hurricane status late on August 30;1967
Events
January
* January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair.
* January 5
** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establ ...
.Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, though building high pressures to the north of the hurricane turned Anita to the west-southwest. The hurricane developed a well-defined eye
Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conv ...
, and Anita began to rapidly intensify late on September 1 after attaining
major hurricane status. During a two-day period up to its peak intensity, Anita deepened at a rate of 2
mbar per hour, and on September 2 the hurricane reached peak winds of 175 mph (280 km/h) while located just offshore northeastern
Mexico
Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...
, making Anita a
Category 5 on the
Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale.
Hurricane Anita maintained its strength as it approached land, and at 1100
UTC on September 2 it made
landfall on
Soto la Marina,
Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...
, about 145 miles (235 km) south of
Brownsville, Texas or 80 miles (130 km) north of
Tampico, Mexico. Moving ashore with a pressure of 926
mbar, Anita was the third most intense tropical cyclone to strike the nation, and was the most intense hurricane to hit from the Gulf of Mexico. It rapidly weakened over the mountainous terrain of Mexico, and on September 3, about 25 hours after moving ashore, Anita emerged into the eastern
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...
as a tropical depression. Reclassified as
Tropical Depression Eleven, the system continued to the west, and weakened further after encountering cooler water temperatures. The depression gradually lost its deep convection, and on September 4 it dissipated off of the southern tip of the
Baja California Peninsula.
Preparations
Shortly after first developing, one oil company evacuated its oil rigs off of
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
and
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a U.S. state, state in the Deep South and South Central United States, South Central regions of the United States. It is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 20th-smal ...
by helicopter, with several other companies beginning to evacuate unneeded workers.
Ultimately, 7,000 oil workers were removed from offshore oil platforms.
The threat of the developing disturbance prompted officials to close a state park in southern Louisiana. The
National Hurricane Center
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is the division of the United States' NOAA/ National Weather Service responsible for tracking and predicting tropical weather systems between the Prime Meridian and the 140th meridian west poleward to the 3 ...
advised small craft along the northern Gulf Coast to remain at port.
Initially, Anita was predicted to continue tracking west-northwestward and make landfall near the Texas/Louisiana border. As a result, schools in
Cameron Parish, Louisiana were closed,
and on August 30 a
hurricane watch was issued for the southwestern Louisiana and northeastern Texas coastlines. After the track shifted further to the south, the watch was replaced with a hurricane warning between
Brownsville and just south of
Corpus Christi, Texas.
An emergency shelter was opened in
Brownwood, Texas, and
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
trucks were prepared to assist in evacuations.
An official from the
National Weather Service
The National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the ...
recommended evacuation for all residents east of
Galveston, Texas
Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Gal ...
living in an area below 5 feet (1.5 m) above sea level; about 20,000 left
Cameron, Louisiana
Cameron is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the parish seat of Cameron Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the Lake Charles Metropolitan Statistical Area. After sustaining extreme damage from Hurricane Rita in 2005 and Hurric ...
.
In all, about 58,000 people evacuated coastal locations in Louisiana and Texas.
Though the National Hurricane Center did not issue hurricane warnings for Mexico, officials warned the Mexican government of the potential danger of the hurricane. Across the northeastern coastline of the country, 35,000 people evacuated prior to the arrival of the hurricane,
including all of the residents in the village where the hurricane struck.
The Mexican army assisted in evacuations and preparing emergency shelters.
Impact
United States
As the precursor tropical disturbance crossed southern
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, a ...
, it dropped light rainfall of over 1 inch (25 mm) in the
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at th ...
area.
Later, as a developing tropical depression, the system produced gusty winds and heavy rainfall in southern
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a U.S. state, state in the Deep South and South Central United States, South Central regions of the United States. It is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 20th-smal ...
;
one station near
Galliano reported over 3 inches (76 mm) of precipitation.
Hurricane Anita produced a
storm tide of 2 feet (0.6 m) above normal in
Grand Isle, which resulted in hundreds of families being asked to leave their homes.
The hurricane produced above-normal tides along the
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
coastline, which closed several highways including
Texas State Highway 87
State Highway 87 (SH 87) runs for between Galveston, Texas (at a terminus shared with Interstate 45 and Spur 342) to U.S. Highway 59 and U.S. Highway 84 in Timpson, Texas.
Highway 87 has a notable stretch between Sea Rim State Park and High ...
.
The northern periphery of Hurricane Anita produced light to moderate rainfall across the southern portion of the state, which peaked at 4.97 inches (126 mm) at
Rio Grande City.
Damage in the state was minor; on
South Padre Island damage was limited to a few broken windows.
Mexico
Hurricane Anita made landfall in a sparsely populated portion of
Mexico
Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...
; as a result, few meteorological statistics exist. A station near where the hurricane moved ashore recorded 17.52 inches (445 mm) of precipitation in six hours, which resulted in severe flooding and mudslides.
Winds along the eastern Mexico coastline were estimated at over 100 mph (160 km/h).
The hurricane caused extensive damage to fishing and farming communities in northeastern Mexico.
Strong winds destroyed thousands of homes and left about 25,000 people homeless, according to newspaper reports from Mexico City. The winds destroyed the roofs of most buildings near where the hurricane moved ashore,
and also caused widespread power outages which disrupted communications. Heavy rainfall destroyed or obstructed roadways across the region,
with some flooded avenues in
Tampico and reports of flooded highways near
Ciudad Victoria.
Eleven people were killed in floods and mudslides across
Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...
.
In all, at least 50,000 people were affected by the hurricane in Mexico.
Aftermath
The name Anita was retired following this storm, and will never be used for an Atlantic hurricane again. Shortly after the hurricane made landfall, the government of Mexico sent two trucks of food to the areas of greatest impact.
Additionally, officials permitted full use of the Mexican railway system to facilitate the distribution of aid.
Three municipalities were also declared disaster areas following the storm.
In
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, the combination of moderate rainfall and high tides in low-lying marshland led to a mosquito outbreak near
Galveston
Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Gal ...
following the storm.
See also
*
List of Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes
*
List of Atlantic hurricanes
Lists of Atlantic hurricanes, or tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean, are organized by the properties of the hurricane or by the location most affected.
By property
* List of Atlantic hurricane seasons
* List of Atlantic hurricane records
...
*
List of Atlantic–Pacific crossover hurricanes
*
Other storms of the same name
References
External links
Monthly Weather Review for 1977
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anita (1977)
1977 Atlantic hurricane season
Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes
Retired Atlantic hurricanes
Atlantic hurricanes in Mexico
Hurricane Anita
Hurricane Anita
Eastern Pacific tropical depressions