The latest hurricane to threaten the southern United States is gaining strength as it heads across the Gulf of Mexico.
Hurricane Rita has now been upgraded to a maximum Category Five Hurricane with winds speeds of up to 265 kph.
The latest upgrade makes Rita stronger than Hurricane Katrina, which devastated parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama last month and killed at least 1,037 people.
US President, George W Bush, has ordered a state of emergency in Texas and Louisiana.
After brushing south Florida, Rita is moving west towards Texas on a course that could take it close to New Orleans, already devastated by Hurricane Katrina less than four weeks ago.
The acting director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, David Paulison, said people living and working on the Gulf coast should be prepared to leave. Tens of thousands of people are evacuating coastal towns.
The Mayor of New Orleans, Ray Nagin, has appealed to citizens to stay away.
Meanwhile, oil prices increased as traders worried that Hurricane Rita could smash into key oil facilities in Texas. The cost of a barrel of crude oil rose more than $1 in Asian trading to above $67.
The latest fluctuation came as workers fled oil-rigs in the Gulf of Mexico less than a month after Hurricane Katrina tore through the same region.
