Monster

[JABIII]

[GobblerHntr]

That's one MEAN ASS SON OF A BITCH!

[nitro5x6's]

Hate it for those in the path, but I hope we see an ass of rain from Ike.....It's still really dry here.

[ccleroy]

Dangit Man.........that aint good.............

[Nab]

I do hate it for those in it's path, but we could get some rain out of it once it recurves after it get's inland.
Prayers sent up for those in the path of this terrible storm.

[JABIII]

Looks like there will be plenty of water in Arkansas this year...

[ccleroy]

GALVESTON, Texas — The mayor of Galveston ordered a mandatory evacuation of Galveston Island Thursday and a hurricane warning was issued from Louisiana through most of the Lone Star State's coast as Ike continued to close in on the region.
Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas ordered everyone off the island. Galveston, which is home to about 58,000 people, won't open shelters.
Mandatory evacuation orders were issued for tens of thousands of people in low-lying areas in Harris County, where Houston is located.
And Jefferson and Orange counties, between Houston and the Louisiana state line, in addition to San Patricio County were also ordered to evacuate. More than 325,000 people live in the two counties.
Gleaming skyscrapers, the nation's biggest refinery and NASA's Johnson Space Center lie in areas that could be vulnerable to wind and damaging floodwaters if Ike, now a Category 2 storm, crashes ashore as a major hurricane.
Forecasters expect the storm to make landfall this weekend somewhere between Corpus Christi and Houston, creating the potential for heavy punishment for Houston even if it's not hit directly.
Some forecasts say Ike could strengthen to a fearsome Category 4 hurricane with winds of at least 131 mph over the Gulf of Mexico, and emergency officials warned it could drive a storm surge as high as 18 feet.
If current projections of the storm's path hold up, the area surrounding Houston — home to about 4 million people — would be lashed by the eastern or "dirty" side of the storm, said meteorologist Jeff Masters, co-founder of San Francisco-based Weather Underground. This stronger side of the storm often packs heavy rains, walloping storm surge and tornadoes.
Click for the latest on Ike at MyFOXHurricane.com | The Weather Undergound | The National Hurricane Center
"I expect a lot of damage in Houston from this storm," said Masters, adding that Ike could cause a "huge storm surge" affecting at least 100 miles of the Texas coast.
Houston officials were expecting some flooding, the question is how much.
Patrick Trahan, spokesman for the city of Houston, told The Associated Press early Thursday that "based on the current forecast (we) would expect to see some flooding based solely on the surge in some low-lying areas."
Four counties south and east of Houston have announced mandatory or voluntary evacuations, and authorities began moving weak and chronically ill patients by bus to San Antonio, about 190 miles from Houston. About 1 million people live in the coastal counties between Corpus Christi and Galveston.
But no immediate evacuations were ordered in Harris County, which includes Houston.
The Galveston-Houston area could be on the edge of hurricane-force wind gusts, even if the storm makes land 100 miles to the southwest as some forecasts say is likely, said forecaster Joe Bartosik. Storm surges in the Houston-Galveston area could reach 10 to 14 feet in a Category 3 storm, and as much as 20 feet for a Category 4, said Bartosik, senior meteorologist with WeatherBug, a private weather company with 1,500 weather stations along the Gulf Coast.
The surge in Galveston Bay could push floodwaters into Houston, damaging areas that include the nation's biggest refinery and NASA's Johnson Space Center.
Diana Rangel, a lifelong resident of Freeport, which is under a mandatory evacuation order in Brazoria County, said it is better that she, her family and other residents on the Texas coast, leave.
"We don't want to get stuck out here (in flood waters)," she said Wednesday as she filled her car with gasoline at a convenience store in Freeport overrun with other vehicles waiting in line to fill up.
The oil and gas industry also watched the storm closely, fearing damage to the very heart of its operations.
Texas is home to 26 refineries that account for one-fourth of U.S. refining capacity, and most are clustered along the Gulf Coast in such places as Houston, Port Arthur and Corpus Christi. Exxon Mobil Corp.'s plant in Baytown, outside Houston, is the nation's largest refinery. Dow Chemical has a huge operation just north of Corpus Christi.
Refineries are built to withstand high winds, but flooding can disrupt operations and — as happened in Louisiana after Hurricane Gustav — power outages can shut down equipment for days or weeks. An extended shutdown could lead to higher gasoline prices.
At 2 a.m. EDT, Ike was a Category 2 storm with winds near 100 mph. It was about 645 miles east of Brownsville, Texas, and was moving west-northwest near 9 mph, after ravaging homes in Cuba and killing dozens of people in the Caribbean.

[DRDUCK]

Gas is already spiking as I type. 5 bucks a gal. on the gulf coast already. Crooks.

[Scatters]

Looks like there will be plenty of water in Arkansas this year...

Took the words out of my mouth.

[Chuck the Duck Slayer]

Anyone remember where all the evacuees from Katrina ended up being bused to?? Houston. Did all of them return to the Crescent City after Katrina? Not hardly. Do you get the feeling that Mother nature doesnt like some of the evacuees??? I'm just sayin!!! The Weather Channel has Ike heading right for Houston makes me wonder!!! I hope no evacuees ever decide to head towards SC. It is already bad enough with all the damn Ohio evacuees and they dont even get hurricanes. Wonder what they are running from???

[JABIII]

The Texicans will be in our prayers. This past duck season the last downed trees from Hurricane Hugo dissapeared from our swamp. Hugo hit us on September 21 1989. This one looks a lot like Hugo. These storms have effects that last for DECADES after Cantore makes his last report. They change the landscape, they change the very mindset of the people.

But rest assured, unlike the Yankee Floridians after Andrew and the, well you know, after Katrina, the Texans will not be sitting on rooftops like baby birds who have lost their mothers. They will be cranking their chainsaws, rolling up their sleeves, and getting the job done just like we did.

FEMA? Whatever. You won't see people waiting for FEMA to save any Texans. The only thing FEMA will be good for in Texas is to supply funding for cleanup. They paid to clear 20 miles of roads in Fork Swamp after Hugo remodeled it. Thanks for the new food plots guys...

[Simple Man]

I REALLY hope and pray that everybody in Texas comes away unscathed, but damn if a hurricane ain't good for our business...

[JABIII]

Cantore, who is in Galveston, says people are about to start dying like flies. He says that the people, including the authorities, are not taking this seriously. I imagine his Jersey ass is underestimating Texans...

[FEETDOWN]

If Cantore is in Galveston, I'd leave that motherfucker now

[ccleroy]

As of now.............

[ccleroy]

If Cantore is in Galveston, I'd leave that motherfucker now

He's an Idiot.........

[Duck Nitz]

THe Godfather of Weather..lol

[ccleroy]

Update.........

[ccleroy]

Ike Strikes Galveston and Houston
Tim Ballisty, Meteorologist, The Weather Channel
10:13 a.m. ET 9/13/2008
Hurricane Ike
Ike made landfall at 2:10 a.m. CDT at Galveston, Texas, with maximum sustained winds near 110 miles per hour. Its minimum pressure was 951.6 millibars, reported by the barometer at the Galveston Pleasure Pier when the center passed overhead.
As of 8 a.m. CDT, Ike was located right over Conroe, Texas, with maximum sustained winds at 90 mph. It is heading north at 18 mph, paralleling Interstate 45.
View the Ike Tracker here.
A hurricane warning remains in effect from Morgan City, Louisiana, to Port O'Connor, Texas.
Tropical storm and hurricane conditions are being reported anywhere from Houston/Galvston east to Beaumont and Lake Charles and north to Lufkin, Texas.
There are numerous wind reports, surge reports, and damage reports coming in to weather.com.
You can follow along with the latest news and stats concerning Hurricane Ike by clicking here. Updates will be made frequently.
Metro Houston faced a wicked blow from Ike this morning. Aside from the coastal flooding on the southeast side of the city along the western bay, Houston will deal with sustained tropical storm-force winds with numerous gusts to hurricane force. Once the center passes I-10, the metro area will see a slow decrease in winds but the heavy rain will continue into the afternoon.
Skyscrapers endured higher winds this morning than compared to the street level because of their elevation. Windows have been blown out in several of these very tall buildings throughout downtown Houston.
As Ike continues inland, life threatening flooding rains and potentially damaging winds will spread inland across Texas. Inland tropical storm warnings are in effect for cities as far north as the Red River, including the Dallas/Fort Worth area, with inland hurricane wind warnings as far north as Tyler, Texas.
As Ike weakens Sunday, the flooding rains will shift into eastern Oklahoma, northern Arkansas, southeast Kansas, central and southern Missouri and southern Illinois.

[ccleroy]