Galveston residents and officials assess Ike's wrath
In Galveston today, storm-battered residents who declined to evacuate from Hurricane Ike's path gingerly crept from their homes to assess the damage.
Galveston officials today worried about the fate of about 23,000 people who ignored a mandatory evacuation order.
Some tried to call for rescues as the hurricane struck, but dispatchers had to decline because emergency units were taken off the streets.
The storm surge was expected to be 14 feet to 17 feet on Galveston Island. Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said the surge peaked at 11 to 12 feet on the west side of the storm and is expected to recede. However, the surge is now pushing to the east, he added.
"We don't know what we're going to find (today)," said Galveston Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas. "We hope we'll find that the people who didn't leave here are alive and well."
Galveston officials this afternoon said they were no confirmed fatalties so far. Officials said they are continuing to rescue people. They had searched 42 buildings and rescued 27 people who were taken to the Ball High School shelter.
Ten buildings have burned to the ground because the fire department could not get to them. Seven buildings collapsed because of wind. Two of the seven that collapsed were apartment buildings. Officials said they don't know if anyone was inside.
Going east to west on the 32-mile long island, emergency rescue personnel have been able to get as far as the 11 mile road marker. That means roughly two-thirds of the island still remains inaccessible.
Huge areas of the island remain underwater. At an afternoon press conference, Thomas said officials they were intiating a recovery plan, but would not provide more details about the plan.
A spokesperson for the mayor said National Guard troops are on the way, though National Guard helicopters are already there.
No one is allowed into the island. There's still a lot of debris on the causeway. They have cleared a path so people can get off island.
The Galveston Fire Department received more than 100 calls after emergency personnel had ceased rescue operations at around 7 p.m. Friday night, and Fire Chief Michael A. Varela, Sr., said they planned to make those visits ''as soon as weather permits."
Those who called were told to ''be patient, to get up as high as they can, get in their homes" and that rescuers ''will get to them as soon as we can."
In Austin, state emergency officials said water was encroaching from both ends of the island as well as over the seawall. The University of Texas Medical Branch was taking on water, officials said....>
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5999540.html
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
