Update on Katrina

Hurricane Katrina is making landfall as I type this. The storm has weakened slightly, down to category 4 strength with sustained winds of 150 mph, but it appears that's as far down as it'll go before it rolls ashore. The Weather Channel is buzzing with reports out of the Gulf Coastal region as Katrina's massive eye wall roars toward land. I heard a report of a 114 mph wind gust out of Grand Isle. Power has gone out in Biloxi, Mississippi and near Gulf Port and Covington as the transformers are blowing everywhere; the blue flashes I've seen in the backgrounds of the live video feeds are unmistakably them. Reports of tornado warnings are flying in coastal counties including Orleans (where, obviously, New Orleans is located) and just north of Mobile, Alabama. Frankly, I'm surprised the storm crew is still able to broadcast with conditions deteriorating as rapidly as they are. I'm watching storm chaser Jim Cantore reporting from the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Gulfport. Only minutes ago, the back drop was fairly tranquil; only light rain and gusty winds. Now, it's a deluge of cascading water and wind blowing so hard it shrieks. Jeff Morrow and Mike Seidel have moved farther inland; no report on Stephanie Abrams and her whereabouts yet. Here's hoping she's safe because we're only just starting to see the worst of this hurricane.

Please continue to pray for the residents of the Gulf Coast, especially those who weren't able to evacuate from New Orleans for a host of reasons. Pray also for the people living in inland regions like Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Just because Katrina strikes land on the Gulf Coast doesn't mean the threat is over. They'll be next in line to receive a beating from her pounding rain, winds still at tropical storm and maybe even hurricane force, and isolated tornadoes. This is a catastrophic event on the scale of Camille and Andrew that is sure to change the lives of those living in New Orleans forever. While you're praying, thank God that you're not down there having to escape or survive the fury of nature. If you've survived a hurricane like this, you never forget it.