Isn’t Life Strange?

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Ike is flooding the west side of Galveston Island while waves are crashing against the seawall at the tourist area of Galveston.

I did a reconnaissance mission this morning in my local area to get a feel for what people were doing today. Last minute preparation activity was still going strong. Grocery stores were busy, but Wal Mart stores in the Houston area were closed. Home Depot stores were closing at 11:00 AM and Lowe’s Home Improvement Stores were saying open at least until sometime this afternoon. I drove through some residential neighborhoods and was surprised to see that not one house had any boarded windows. If I remember correctly, there were several homes that boarded over their windows in preparation for Rita in 2005.

Northbound traffic on Interstate 45 was steady but more or less traveling at normal speed. From what I saw on television, traffic westbound on I-10 heading toward San Antonio was bumper to bumper in areas where lanes narrowed.

All the talk on television today is about the flooding. There have already been rescues of people who were trapped in their vehicles or at their homes by high water. The Coast Guard will not be able to make these rescues for much longer due to wind conditions.

Where I live, it is currently breezy but not windy yet.

I just heard an announcement that it is anticipated that seven million people will be affected by power outages. Yikes. It’s going to get hot. If I am without power for more than a day or two, I am planning on leaving town if it’s even possible.

I’ll post another update at least once this evening, provided I have electricity and an Internet connection. I may use Twitter to provide up to the minute updates, and those will appear on the right sidebar here.