Remembering Hurricane Rita 20 years later

TYLER, Texas (KETK)- Today marks 20 years since Hurricane Rita tore through the Texas-Louisiana border, bringing devastating winds and extreme rainfall

"Rita actually was then and even to this day the strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Gulf," East Texas Storm Team Meteorologist Brayden Siau said.

Hurricane Rita hit just 26 days after Hurricane Katrina left Louisiana in shambles. Mass panic led to mass evacuations, time ticking away as it barreled toward land.

"2 and a half to 3 million people evacuating, and that just caused chaos," Siau said. " More people died in the evacuation from Rita than in the storm itself."

Twenty years later, Katherine Doyle reflects on the days leading up to the moment when she was a freshman in high school, leaving everything behind to find safety wit