Posted on 09/12/2008 11:29:13 PM PDT by NautiNurse
The eyewall of Hurricane Ike crossed Galveston Island in the early hours of Saturday morning. Reports indicate as many as 20,000 residents of Galveston Island chose not to evacuate as storm surge engulfed the island. The Freeport Chief of Police reported as many as 2000 residents did not evacuate as flood waters swamped coastal communities. There are widespread reports of power outages and coastal flooding throughout the Texas/Louisiana region. The U.S. Coast Guard received hundreds of calls Friday afternoon to rescue people stranded by flood waters along the barrier islands and Galveston Bay communities.
Multiple fires broke out in the Greater Houston area fueled by strong winds. Fire fighting efforts were hampered by flood waters. Brennan's Restaurant, a landmark in Houston, burned to the ground. A 584-foot freighter crippled in the Gulf of Mexico and its crew of 22 survived the storm after The U.S. Coast Guard was forced to abort rescue efforts Friday afternoon due to foul weather
Gulf Coast wholesale gasoline prices jumped to nearly $5 a gallon over fears that water and wind damage could keep the facilities closed for days or longer. Oil companies had shut down 97.5 percent of production in the Gulf of Mexico by Friday morning and were battening down refineries and petrochemical plants in an area that accounts for one-fifth of U.S. refining capacity.
Exxon Mobil reported evacuating workers from its Gulf Coast offshore platforms and onshore facilities in the anticipated path of Ike, shutting down daily production of about 36,000 barrels of oil and 270 million cubic feet of gas..
Public Advisory Updated every 3 hours
Discussion Updated every 6 hours
Buoy data: Western Gulf of Mexico
Houston/Galveston Long Range Radar
Corpus Christi Long Range Radar
Brownsville Long Range Radar
Lake Charles Long Range Radar
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Additional Resources:
Navy Tropical Cyclone
Storm Pulse Very cool site
KHOU Houston
ABC 13 News Houston
FOX News Houston
KPLC Lake Charles
KFDM 6 Beaumont/Port Arthur
KKBMT 12 Beaumont
KRIS-TV Corpus Christi
KZTV Corpus Christi
Brazoria County Emergency Management
Galveston County Emergency Management
Chambers Country Emergency Management
Liberty County Emergency Management
| Category | Wind Speed | Barometric Pressure | Storm Surge | Damage Potential |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tropical Depression |
< 39 mph < 34 kts |
Minimal | ||
| Tropical Storm |
39 - 73 mph 34 - 63 kts |
Minimal | ||
| Hurricane 1 (Weak) |
74 - 95 mph 64 - 82 kts |
28.94" or more 980.02 mb or more |
4.0' - 5.0' 1.2 m - 1.5 m |
Minimal damage to vegetation |
| Hurricane 2 (Moderate) |
96 - 110 mph 83 - 95 kts |
28.50" - 28.93" 965.12 mb - 979.68 mb |
6.0' - 8.0' 1.8 m - 2.4 m |
Moderate damage to houses |
| Hurricane 3 (Strong) |
111 - 130 mph 96 - 112 kts |
27.91" - 28.49" 945.14 mb - 964.78 mb |
9.0' - 12.0' 2.7 m - 3.7 m |
Extensive damage to small buildings |
| Hurricane 4 (Very strong) |
131 - 155 mph 113 - 135 kts |
27.17" - 27.90" 920.08 mb - 944.80 mb |
13.0' - 18.0' 3.9 m - 5.5 m |
Extreme structural damage |
| Hurricane 5 (Devastating) |
Greater than 155 mph Greater than 135 kts |
Less than 27.17" Less than 920.08 mb |
Greater than 18.0' Greater than 5.5m |
Catastrophic building failures possible |
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Previous Threads:
Hurricane Ike Live Thread III
Hurricane Ike Live Thread II
Hurricane Ike Live Thread I
TS Hanna, Hurricane Ike & TS Josephine [Other than that, the tropics are calm]
Tropical Storms Hanna, Ike and Josephine, TD Gustav (Other than that, the tropics are calm)
AND he reminds them- they were TOLD to have 3 days worth of supplies to tide them over til help arrives.
~~~~
Good!
Why don’t the Dims just start a new party?
The Nanny State Party
That is a map of YESTERDAY’s precip - only the part near Houston has anything to do with Ike.
a bayou is basically a swamp.
Hey, no problem! I hate to bring bad news but I know I’d rather be prepared than come back to a dark, dry and non-flushing house. Were you able to reach that phone number I posted? I bet they will keep you updated. It’s amazing that we are back in business just a few short blocks to the north.
Culbertson has really stood out as a great congressman in every interview I’ve seen of his these last couple days. Thanks for electing him!
We lost pressure for a bit yesterday afternoon but it came back in less than an hour. I hope that’s all it is for you.
Thanks. I understand a little better.
Person interviewed on Galveston Island says a lot of people got out, and he doubts there are many injuries there.
http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1459162514/bclid1461295911/bctid1792997602
Hmm . . . methinks he might be in for a surprise, given all the 911 calls from there during the storm.
I lost over a dozen plumeria branches. Luckily I have quite a few so next spring, I’ll take cuttings and multiply what is left.
My giant birds of paradise (over 8’) took a whipping and look like the leaves were run through a paper shredder. I think they’ll be fine though, they’re still in the ground. The banana trees also look like a paper shredder got to them.
Best thing about a bayou during disasters is that they’re large areas that are sparsely populated, have few roads, and transportation is mostly done by water anyway.
Our friends are down there at their second home and want to head back to California....but they're leary, and don't know what's going on given they have no power, and very little communication ability?
When they get a cell signal, they call us out here to see what's happening down there!
Yeah...the next video is one of a man saying a lot of people didn’t leave...Go figure...
http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1459162514/bclid1461295911/bctid1791637392
Welcome back! Glad you are here for another round.
IKE stripped my crepe myrtle blooms.
I should have more in a couple weeks.
its a pity though, they were in full bloom
Lack of gasoline isn’t usually the problem. Once roads are reopened, extra tanker trucks are sent by all companies. Lack of power is the main rub.
Amen, too bad Ike didn’t pick him up and carry him somewhere else :-)
Kinky WOULD probably be too high to do much damage.
;)
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