Steve's Ramblings

We followed Hurricane Ike on TV and the internet as it approached the Galveston coast Friday evening and into early Saturday morning. Around 1:00 AM (Saturday) the wind gusts really picked up and the rain intensified. It evoked past images of fierce tropical storms hitting Caribbean Islands - rain and wind blowing trees sideways. The roar of the wind was something I had never experienced (even during mountain windstorms). About 2:00, my ISP lost power (at least, I presumed that was the reason I lost internet access), and I began watching the TV reports. An hour later, as the eyewall approached downtown Houston, our power went out. I decided to go to bed. I wasn't certain whether I could sleep or not.

There was much noise - things flying about, hitting the house, windblown rain splashing all around, and the never-ending roar of the wind.

I think I dozed off around 4:30 and awakened about four hours later. We got up to assess the damage; and fortunately, aside from a lot of tree debris in the front yard, there was not much.

We took a walk around the neighborhood. It seemed that most of the damage was the result of fallen tree limbs...on vehicles, houses. And, the amount of tree debris was incredible. There were huge oak and pecan trees totally uprooted.

The Houston Chronicle has posted a large collection of pictures of the approach of Ike, the storm itself, and the aftermath. In addition, Jeff has posted a number of excellent pictures he has taken over the last few days on his Flickr page.