Ok- is it just me from being overtired, or did the president seem extremely sober this morning?
I was listening, not watching. I did hear about the gas regulations being suspended.
September 13, 2008
Galveston family finds refuge at 11th hour
Steven Rushing heard the warnings, but it all sounded so familiar.
When Rita came three years ago, everyone was warned to leave or face a likely death, and when the storm turned away, people rode bicycles on the streets of Galveston.
Even as Ike bore down on the island where he has lived all his life and worked as a commercial fisherman, he felt assured, whipping up a bowl of chili for himself and six family members and cozying up in his living room to watch TV.
``I thought this was going to be like that. I was very wrong. It’s bad, real bad. We barely made it out.’’
At about 11 p.m., he took a look outside and saw the water. Before he knew it, the surge flooded through the door and the electrical sockets, up to his feet, his knees and his waist. His mattress and couch began to float, his 12 year-old son threw up in the bathroom and his 19 year-old son wrote down his social security number on his arm, assuring his father that he wasn’t scared, but wanted to make sure he could be identified.
``We were staring down death,’’ he said.
Rushing decided to try tying himself and his family members to a tree outside in hopes they would be rescued.
Just as he broke a window in the living room, though, something very unexpected happened: the eye passed over.
``It’s like somebody pushed a button and turned off everything,’’ said Rushing, 37. ``It was eerie.’’
So he loaded up his wife, pregnant daughter, two sons, nephew, cousin and two dogs on a ski boat made for five people and navigated the streets, which were flooded with six to eight feet of water.
They were 20 blocks from the San Luis Hotel, where the city’s leaders and emergency operations personnel were staying. The boat ran aground about four blocks from the hotel, and the whole crowd ran straightaway from there, making it before the fierce winds picked up again.
Once he arrived, he spoke wide-eyed to reporters and firefighters, almost in shock, while his family slept.
``I’m beat up, I’m traumatized,’’ he said, wondering if the shrimp boat he depends on for his livelihood had been destroyed. ``My wife’s mad at me. She wanted to evacuate. Next time, we’ll leave a week early.’’
LINDSAY WISE
Houston Chronicle blog
Water conservation in effect. One water pump known to be non-functioning at this point.