Officials in Galveston County decided Tuesday not to take any chances.

They issued a mandatory evacuation order for residents effective Wednesday.

The order was issued as Hurricane Rita continues to gain strength as it passes through the Florida Straits and toward the Gulf of Mexico.

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Forecasters predict Rita will strike somewhere along the Texas coast over the weekend, although it’s too early to know for sure exactly when and exactly where.

Mandatory evacuation of nursing homes and assisted-living facilities in Galveston County, where Rita could hit, begins Wednesday morning.

The evacuation of the general population begins 12 hours later at 6p.m. Wednesday.

Officials are taking advantage of a new state law permitting mandatory evacuations, which was passed after Florida endured four hurricanes in rapid succession last year.

Public schools in Galveston and Texas A&M at Galveston have canceled classes for the rest of the week.

Texas is also evacuating Hurricane Katrina-weary Louisiana refugees from shelters in Corpus Christi, Houston and Beaumont.

Forecasters are expecting Hurricane Rita to dump about eight inches of rain on the Florida Keys, down from earlier forecasts of up to 15 inches.

The storm gained strength rapidly Tuesday, first becoming a hurricane and then reaching Category-Two status with winds of 100 miles an hour.

Officials say high water and debris now block part of the main highway along the Florida Keys.

The state highway patrol also says wind-driven water is flowing across other sections of the road.

Scattered power outages have also been reported.

The island chain is facing a possible storm surge of up to six feet and as much as eight inches of rain, but Key West's mayor is hoping the islands miss most of the storm's fury. He says Rita's eye is forecast to stay out at sea.

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