The unnamed Category 4 hurricane that slammed into Galveston, Texas Sept. 8, 1900 remains the deadliest ever to hit the United States, having killed at least 8,000 people (estimates vary) and leveling virtually the entire town. Credit: NOAAFrom Live Science:
Florida and Louisiana have had an unfair share of hurricane activity these past four years while Texas has generally taken less of a beating.
That could change this week as powerful Hurricane Ike takes aim at the Lone Star State.
In fact, Texas has been in the crosshairs many times before and is second only to Florida among U.S. states in the number of direct hits from hurricanes.
It seems ages ago now, but it was just seven weeks back that Dolly struck southern Texas, knocking down trees and power lines and causing extensive flooding of low-lying areas. Preliminary damage estimates were put at $1 billion or more. In some isolated areas, rainfall reached 16 inches. But Dolly was not a major hurricane. Its peak wind gusts were around 100 mph, and its eye made landfall, on July 23, in a largely uninhabited area.
The big storm that defines the hurricane threat to Texas was the disaster that struck Galveston more than a century ago.
Read more ....
No comments:
Post a Comment