Having lived in Houston for about 38 years now and going through quite a few hurricane warnings and a couple of direct hits, Rita was an odd confluence of events that did have tragic consequences for many as Big Steve relates. I never saw anything like it before or since, even with hurricane Ike. It can’t be considered the norm at all and it was the result of media generated panic as much as anything, not that the gov didn’t screw up as well in some ways.