As Hurricane Ike grows, Texas orders evacuations
The storm's winds are near 100 mph and strengthening, on target to strike Saturday between Houston and Corpus Christi. Four counties face mandatory or voluntary evacuation orders.
WHARTON, TEXAS — With Hurricane Ike gathering strength over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday, authorities ordered mandatory or voluntary evacuations in four low-lying counties along the Texas coast as frail and elderly residents were bused to safety inland.
Ike barreled across the gulf past Cuba, strengthening into a Category 2 hurricane with maximum winds near 100 mph. Forecasters predicted the storm would become a Category 3 -- possibly a Category 4 -- before making landfall somewhere between Corpus Christi and Houston early Saturday.
A Category 4 storm on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale packs sustained winds of at least 131 mph and storm surges 13 feet to 18 feet above normal.
The state's coastal areas are home to the nation's largest collection of refineries and chemical plants. Texas has a quarter of the nation's refining capacity, with most of the facilities located in the hurricane's potential path as outlined by forecasters.
As highways began to swell with traffic heading inland Wednesday and people jammed stores to stock up on supplies, state officials prepared 1,350 buses to ferry people out of harm's way. More than 1 million people live along the coast between Corpus Christi and Houston, which is just inland from Galveston Bay and has a population of about 4 million.
To accommodate those fleeing the storm, state troopers opened the shoulder of the northbound lanes of Interstate 37 between Corpus Christi and San Antonio.
Along interstates in Houston and its suburbs, overhead electronic signs read: "HURRICANE FORMING IN GULF -- FILL YOUR GAS TANKS."
Oil companies removed workers from more than 400 production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, although most such facilities were made stronger after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. "It is imperative that residents pay attention to this storm, heed warnings from their local leaders and take the steps necessary to protect their families, homes and businesses," Gov. Rick Perry said.
Michael Peterson, who lives outside Houston, was at a Lowe's store southwest of the city, loading his shopping cart with gasoline cans, bottled water, batteries and a battery-operated lantern.
"Just playing it safe," Peterson said at the checkout counter. "I don't know if I'm staying or leaving, but at least I know I'll be prepared."
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