Confusion still reigns in Galveston

by Amy Judd | September 18, 2008 at 10:28 am

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Now that Ike has passed over, Galveston does not seem to be doing much better. There is now traffic from all directions filled with every type of car you can imagine. Galevston is trying to get back to normal and its residents are trying to return.

This is a great video about the damage that has happened in Galveston.

Meanwhile, on the northbound side, a line of vehicles headed back toward Houston. After five days, the rescue teams were leaving. Their grim search for survivors of Hurricane Ike had finally been called off.

So it goes in Galveston, where everything is somewhat topsy-turvy.

People may have food but they most likely do not have power. Flooded basements are drying out, but health and sanitation problems loom. Residents are clamoring to be let back in to inspect their damaged homes — though most are being turned away — and some of the workers sent to help their city are heading out.

“I’ve got to get through,” said James Brooks, a retired longshoreman, who was sitting at a service station snack shop off the highway. Mr. Brooks and his wife had come 150 miles from Bryan, Tex., for their heart medication. Those affected by Hurricane Ike have entered a sort of limbo and are irritable and sleep-deprived. Their patience has been worn thin by the lack of gasoline, the stubborn standing water, the potential threats from insects and disease.

“It’s not a sanitary state on the island right now,” said David L. Callender, president of the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. “People are moving around, trying to clear debris and getting their homes cleared and the like, and they’re encountering these situations where they are going to be at a much higher risk for infection.”

The hospital will not be up and running for another month at least it is predicted.
About 3,500 people were evacuated from the island and this continues at about 200 to 400 more each day.
Electricity still has not been restored for people in Houston, and might not be until the end of the week.

“We’re in a marathon, folks,” Mr. Yarborough said at a news conference on Wednesday afternoon. “We’re not in a race. It’s going to take time and patience to continue to bring the resources up to make our communities safe and inhabitable again.”

So far, the death toll from the storm stands at 51, with at least 20 in Texas and the rest spread across nine other states that stood in the hurricane’s path. Michael Chertoff, the secretary of homeland security, visited the region on Wednesday afternoon and said his agency was working hard to get the lights back on in Houston.

Confusion reigns in Galveston however as traffic is at an obvious standstill, but residents want to get home and rebuild what they may have lost.

It's a stressful time for all involved and will be some time before Galveston can be considered 'normal' again.

However, pet owners only have 10 days left to claim their pets before they will be set up for re-adoption.

The Animal Incident Command Center in Galveston Island, set up to rescue stray and stranded animals in the wake of Hurricane Ike, rescued 200 animals in the two days they were open.
"We are close to capacity and we have no doubt we will exceed our resources by the end of today," said Caroline Dorsett, Animal Incident Command Center director. "We are hoping to reunite animals with their owners as quickly as possible," she added.

In partnership with the Houston SPCA, photos of rescued animals along with a brief description will be loaded onto their Web site, www.hspca.org starting as soon as possible.

Pet owners will have a 10-day window of time to identify and collect their animals from the date of the photo's posting. After that point, the animals will be adopted out.

Because the shelter is at capacity, animals will begin transport to Houston SPCA today to be held for the required hold period.