Hurricane Rita roared toward the Texas and Louisiana coasts early today, a major Category 4 storm that spurred a traffic-snarled exodus toward higher ground and fears it could cripple the heart of the US petrochemical industry.

American broadcasting giant CBS issued a damning independent review of mistakes over an investigative report on President George Bush’s National Guard service, sacking three news executives and a producer for their ”myopic zeal” in rushing it to air.