Hurricane Dean

Something to watch. The storm brewing in the Gulf of Mexico and moving north-westward has been upgraded to a Cat 3 4 Hurricane. The Galloping Beaver posted this satellite loop, and has updates on the storm's progress. Dave also has posted computer models estimating the storm's path -- a particularly frightening one shows it swinging northward in the direction of Louisiana.

Two years after Hurricane Katrina, parts of NOLA remain in a shambles but some progress has been made on repairing the canals (although it's not complete) and putting in place better emergency response measures. It remains to be seen if the city is ready for another major storm; hopefully this won't be put to the test with Hurricane Dean.

Update: TGB has updated information here, including the latest computer model graph. The hurricane is expected to be upgraded to a Cat 5.