Hurricane Ike storm tracker, Galveston webcams and other tropical storm resources

Galveston, Texas, and the Bolivar Peninsula are already feeling the effects of fast-approaching Hurricane Ike, with landfall currently forecast for sometime this evening or Saturday morning.

Here’s the latest Ike update from the L.A. Times, filed this morning: “Texas braces for Hurricane Ike”

“GALVESTON, TEXAS — As Hurricane Ike roared through the Gulf of Mexico toward the Texas coastline this morning, authorities issued more urgent warnings to people in low-lying areas along the coast who have not heeded evacuation orders.

“You don’t play with 6- to 20-foot walls of water coming at you,” Houston Mayor Pro Tem Adrian Garcia said.”

And here’s the latest update from the Associated Press on Hurricane Ike: Ike strands freighter in Gulf; Houston braces.

“Houston — A sprawling and strengthening Hurricane Ike steamed through the Gulf of Mexico today on a track toward the nation’s fourth-largest city, where authorities told residents to brace rather than flee.”

Continue reading for more Hurricane Ike updates and links to storm-tracking resources.

MORE HURRICANE IKE & STORM-TRACKING RESOURCES
Here’s a link to NOAA animation, and GIS data, showing predicted wave heights from Hurricane Ike.

Several Galveston webcams hosted by the Galveston Island Co. are apparently fielding many server requests, as they are very slow to load. Update: Alternatively, try this Galveston Island webcam from the Galveston County Office of Emergency Management.

You can “Look into the eye of a storm” and learn more about the mechanics of hurricanes in this Flash interactive graphic.

The Austin American-Statesman’s reporters are twittering live from the field during Hurricane Ike. Photos here.

For the storm-tracking aficionados out there, we maintain a Tropical Storm Name Database:

Here’s the explainer: “The official catalog of Atlantic storm names is updated on a six-year rotation by the World Meteorological Organization — the current roster is serviceable until 2013. Names remain active until retirement, when a storm is so excessively deadly or costly that it’s permanently removed from the list.”

- Andrew Nystrom, senior producer, Travel, and Times Staff writers

[Photo: A Cuban boy plays under the waves as Hurricane Ike leaves the coasts of Havana on Sept. 10; Alejandro Ernesto / EPA]

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This entry was posted on Friday, September 12, 2008 at 9:47 am by Editor and is filed under New Orleans & Louisiana, News, Tips & Advice, Southern States, Texas. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.