Ike Spreads Devastation Across Country

Despite making landfall as just a Category 2-strength storm, Hurricane Ike’s wind and storm surge has caused massive destruction along the Texas and Louisiana coasts, and the storm continues to cause claims to be filed as far away as the Midwest.

According to a report from Guy Carpenter, the center of Ike hit Galveston Island, Texas, at 7 a.m. local time last Saturday, Sept. 13, with wind speeds of 110 mph. One of the storm’s biggest predicted threats had been its storm surge, which the National Hurricane Center said could be more than 25 feet due to the large size of the storm. However, according to a report from risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide, the surge failed to reach that height, instead topping out at the 13-foot mark. That was still enough for it to overflow flood walls and barriers, though, causing significant flooding damage to Galveston.