Thank you, Car 54
aka Lightning ~ Yes, the reactor and viruses do need guarding. A storm of 400 miles width is no small matter, even at a downgraded speed of 140 mph, it remains a Category 4, with an appearance very similar to that of Katrina.
The gridlocked highways out of Houston ~ with people stuck in traffic for 8 to 15 hours @ 100 degrees Fahrenheit, running out of gas, the gas stations running out of gas, and cars overheating [some people returning home to ride out the storm; as, at the same time, officials stop allowing people to leave because "at this point, being on the highway when the storm hits is a death trap"]. Tankers are reportedly trying to make their way to the gas stations, so people stuck in their cars at them, can get more gas and continue on their way.
People often don't understand the teeter-totter, tight-wire act of when/if to leave. Those with jobs cannot just pick up and leave 3 days before a hurricane is predicted to make landfall. Hurricanes change course and where they're expected to land may not end up being there at all. So, the 'safe' time to leave may be 3 days ahead, but taking off work for 3 days so you can be out of the area, when ~ in fact ~ the hurricane may never hit your area ~ period ~ is just not feasible.
Waiting until you're certain it's going to hit, and minimizing your time off work [so you can keep your job], has the danger of putting you into a time zone where it's THEN impossible to leave. The winds and rain are too high, the roads are flooded, and/or the authorities have gone into the mode of not ALLOWING people to leave. Getting stuck on the highways [as Houston is looking at the possibility of] is a very real threat.
Considering the number of hurricanes that come through the areas of the southern U.S., people begin to add up those days off and other realities, and try to leverage it all with their personal safety. I've seen many people opt to stay, saying, "Hey! I'd rather be at home than stuck out on the highway. I'll take my chances. If I'm going to die, I'd rather be at home than drown out on Highway One." Gridlock happens very quickly. All someone has to think of is trying to enter a busy highway at rush hour, or just on their way to the mall, or on a holiday, or anywhere when traffic is bad. Having over a million people hit the road at the same time and in a stressed state of mind, creates a whole new problem.
This kind of thing makes evacuations even more problematical. Cars breaking down is
never an unusal factor, nor are traffic accidents and people running out of gas, creating even greater traffic jams, in these evacuations. People living in hurricane-prone areas are already
very much aware of the myriad possibilities that can [and do] result in traffic tie-ups and could result in their getting stranded on the highway, with
no protection when the hurricane hits.
This situation creates tragedy on top of tragedy, and makes continuing evacuation even more difficult than it already is:
Associated Press
WILMER, Texas - A bus carrying elderly evacuees from Hurricane Rita caught fire early Friday on a gridlocked highway near Dallas, killing as many as 20 people, authorities said.
"Deputies were unable to get everyone off the bus," spokesman Don Peritz said. "We believe it's going to be closer to 20 fatalities.
The bus, carrying about 45 people, was engulfed with flames, causing a 17-mile backup on Interstate 45, already heavily congested with evacuees from the Gulf Coast. The bus was reduced to a blackened, burned-out shell, surrounded by numerous police cars and ambulances.
There were indications that oxygen used by elderly evacuees could have had a role in the fire, Peritz said. There were a series of explosions, apparently from the oxygen equipment, he said.
"The early indications are this is a mechanical issue. The driver did survive the accident," Peritz said. "It's my understanding he went back on the bus several times to try to evacuate people."
Interstate 45 stretches more than 250 miles from Galveston through Houston to Dallas. The crash site is roughly 17 miles southeast of downtown Dallas.
The news now says that there are at least 24 elderly evacuees who died, and the brakes catching on fire is what is thought to be the cause of the fire.
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Approximately 11:00 AM ~
The winds are at 135 mph now, but Rita is still a Category 4.
Texas is expected to get 16 hours straight of hurricane-force winds.
Water is again [already ~ at this early juncture] spilling over the levee into the 9th Ward of New Orleans.
The huge, metal plate that was put in place to repair the large breach in the levee is, so far, still holding. Concerns are great regarding if/for how long that will continue to be, as the storm is still so far out.
The tankers carrying gasoline [apparently being driven by members of the Coast Guard] to the empty gas stations in Houston are having trouble getting through due to the massive traffic jams.
) , the same can't be said of Louisiana roads. Quite the contrary.... I speak from experience. 
. Parts of Louisiana are also trying to evacuate now.