The track of Ike has shifted a tad north yet again, and it’s downright amazing how much this reminds me of Rita now. Reading through old blog posts makes it that much more surreal, and if I lived up around Beaumont, I’d be pretty skittish.
Unfortunately, the current track is downright ugly for the coast down below Houston, and I’m truly stunned that the mayor of Galveston is only calling a mandatory evacuation for part of the island. Harris County, otoh, has initiated mandatory evacuation procedures for Zones A and B, effective today at noon.
Wherever Ike decides to go, though, there is one crucial difference from Rita: intensity. Ike’s not gearing up nearly as much as people feared, and is highly unlikely to reach the mind-boggling levels of Rita.
Still… Ike is an enormous storm, size-wise, and we’ll probably start getting the early TS-level winds tomorrow around lunchtime. I fully expect Katy ISD to close tomorrow; the announcement should be out within the hour. ADDED: The announcement is out. Katy ISD has gone to “Readiness Level 2, and schools are closed tomorrow (Friday).
So today is Preparation Day.
Everything is coming in from outside: patio furniture, potted plants, garden decorations, hoses…. anything that could be picked up in a big wind and hurled against a window or person. We’re upping the chlorine level in the pool today (to avoid contamination from debris) and we’ll be turning off the pumps tomorrow.
Since we maintain the gas levels in the vehicles (for the most part) during hurricane season, we’re okay there.
We expanded our on-hand water supplies, bread, and comfort food late last night, and today we’ll assemble all the storm candles, batteries, and flashlights so we can place them strategically around the house and fill in any supply gaps. I’ll thoroughly clean at least one bathtub today, but I won’t fill it with water until tomorrow afternoon.
We’re not likely to board w/ a Cat 3 coming in 70 miles away. We are, however, considering some 2 by 4s to add stability to the garage door.
And finally… since I’m a photographer, I’ll be double-checking my batteries and re-cleaning lenses and filters. Just at the moment, the eye is projected nearly over the top of us, and that’s a rare photo opportunity. (Of course, the track will very likely move still, and Ike’s eye is extremely small. Pretty low odds, actually… but ya gotta look for the silver linings!)
Feel free to add any preparations you’re taking at your own home in the comments section, and get ready for a ride!
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Prior Ike posts:
Another hurricane? Ack! What about Katy???
Some links for Pesky Ike (What a pain in the patootie!)