Sierra Blogging Post Archives

Hurricane Ike caused major devastation in Texas and along the Gulf Coast when it made landfall on Galveston Island Saturday morning with 110 mph winds and wall after wall of water.

While the 15 foot storm surge wasn't quite as high as had been predicted, the storm hit Galveston Island incredibly hard and killed at least 32 people in 8 states with its subsequent flooding.

Fortunately, most of the residents of Galveston Island were evacuated ahead of the storm. But some remained and the search was on all weekend to rescue survivors. 2,000 people have been rescued from their flooded homes as of this morning.



There were stories of a couple who floated out of their house on a staircase, a mother and son who were stranded without food, and a man who was convinced he was going to die and says he'll "never wait out a hurricane again." From the article on MSNBC...

Kathi and Paul Norton huddled inside their house in Crystal Beach until it collapsed and was swept away. Their flag pole kept the house from collapsing on top of them, buying them a few seconds to escape, holding onto the staircase.

"You never know what a hurricane is like until you ride it on a staircase," said Kathi Norton, 47. As she spoke outside the giant, warehouse-like shelter on a former Air Force base in San Antonio, busloads of new evacuees were arriving, bumper to bumper.

If you'd like to help Hurricane victims, either here in the states or in hard-hit Haiti, CNN has gathered information on several charities accepting donations. (Haiti has suffered three major hurricanes this season and is in a truly desperate state.) To donate here at home or abroad, visit Impact Your World for more information.

Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by Ike.