Texas a Grim Tableau Nearly a Week After Ike

FOXNews.com ^ | Friday, September 19, 2008 | Associated Press

[metmom]

It was the storm surge. Ike actually missed being a Cat 3 by a wind speed of one mile an hour.

But factors came together just right to form a huge storm surge. Not much can handle waves pounding on it for hours.

That’s typically where most of the damage comes from in a hurricane.

[PAR35]

livestock grazing beneath downed power lines.

That one doesn't even make sense. Or are they talking about a herd of nutria?

[metmom]

Don’t have a clue.

[PAR35]

I don’t think the writer did, either.

[1COUNTER-MORTER-68]

http://aec.ihs.com/news/2006/ibhs-natural-hazard.htm?wbc_purpose=Ba

It’s real,,,IIRC they start at around $180K,,,

Steel frame,,,Pre-fab,,,

Weak spot seems to be the windows,,,

http://www.bolivarchamber.org/Gilchrist.aspx

Factory planned to go in that area when the mess is cleaned up...

[RedMonqey]

livestock grazing beneath downed power lines.

Depends on how big the powers lines.

If it's the large 135ft.500mv transmission towers with dedicated 75ft strips of land on either side , it is very possible as utility cos. like to position these monsters on the best possible locations.

Which, in this case high, dry land with green grass that attractions cattle miles away. They just graze along the strip

[shield]

There were a number of homes on the west end of Galveston that had NO damage at all. Those were homes with the new hurricane construction.

[shield]

Alicia was not near as huge as IKE...IKE is much more like Carla in storm surge....of course, not winds. The storm surge is the worst part of a hurricane. IKE was piling up water for miles where Alicia was much smaller in size...wind speed was higher but the storm surge was very small compared to IKE. IKE moved much slower than Alicia. The back half of the eye winds were very strong...big difference than Alicia.

[PAR35]

But how are the cows going to get under a line that is down? Burrow like a mole?

[metmom]

I understand that the west end of Galveston didn’t get hit as hard and had the seawall to protect it as well. That could also explain why there were more houses standing.

[shield]

There is NO sea wall at west end of Galveston. They also didn’t get that huge storm surge. Yet, the homes on west end that were built with old construction were all gone.

[RedMonqey]

Even the biggest electrical cables are only a fist thick in diameter.

The cows can easily move and eat around the downed cables(assuming the power is off. If not, then it's fried hamburger on the hoof time)

[petercooper]

ck out these pics

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2008/09/the_short_but_eventful_life_of.html

[Daffynition]

Thanks petercooper ... tears of sadness for all. Remarkable pix!

[HokieMom]

Photojournalism at its best. Amazing devastation. Thanks for the link.

[cowdog77]

I always thought having anything beyond a throwaway vacation home on a barrier island was foolish.
Especially something worth hundreds of thousands, plural on the hundreds. It is foolish.

Just as long as the government isn’t going to pay them to rebuild. The bailouts need to stop.
___________________________

They built their oceanfront homes on stilts because they figured they’d get flooded. I figure we don’t need to be bailing them out...they made bad decisions...just like New Orleans.