Texas-watch out-Ike's coming!

[12hooves]

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at4+shtml/083712.shtml?5day?large#contents Scroll down for large map.

[nervousalter]

This isn't looking good for Houston. I'm really worried about my new boy. :(

[Proud To Be Spotted]

I got my 3 out of the Needville area today. My ride (I really need to get my own trailer) would only take me as far as Katy, so they are at Katy Equine. Very unhappy to be stuck in stalls, and really not far enough inland, but I did the best I could. Its official, when I walk in to the hospital Friday, I'm there for the storm.

I have been having panic attacks for the last 2 days, trying to get them somewhere. I just hope it is enough. This yankee is thinking of moving back to Michigan. I cant take this 2 in a row.

[jilltx]

Well due to the path they "think" it might take, my only option was to move them further west, which would only decrease slightly the severity of the storm. :( Mine are staying put, along with all but 3 of the 60 horses that board at my facility. We've had a few come up from the coast to our barn, seeking to get them further "inland" but were still not that far from the coast. Yikes. I hate hurricane season!

You can only do what you can do!

Good luck all!

[BasqueMom]

Right now the weather folks are predicting the Dallas area getting Ike as a tropical storm.
Making tentative reservations at the inn for the boys (big mare motel set up with 12 x 24 or
36 stalls. The area in front of our barn turns into a clay swamp--DH keeps saying we're
gonna get more sand and he's gonna rent a tractor and redo once again the area. But
it doesn't happen so it's off they go for a few days. Cheaper than a vet bill from a
bowed tendon. Basque has had EPM and somedays less coordinated than others. He bowed a right rear a couple of years ago--no idea how he did that. Lots of stall rest
and then some stem cell treatments--a few days at the inn is cheaper especially since he
no longer has medical insurance (he's 18 now).

Winds are 40 to 60 mph predicted, there go some more roof tiles. 6 to 10 inches of rain!
It's been raining on and off for the last few days--a different weather system. Could turn
and go further east.

[12hooves]

I know how you all feel, living in South FL! HATE hurricane season!!! We were stuck in the eye wall of Jeanne and Francis in 2004. (two hurricanes, 3 weeks apart) We moved the horses for the 2nd one, but the first one was the worst. Now I make sure I have a bottle of Kahlua ready for my nerves when a hurricane is coming.:lol:

[Laurierace]

So would it be totally selfish to admit that I am worried not only about all the people in the path of the hurricane, but also about the Ravens vs. Texans game being affected?! I know, I know not exactly the most important thing in life but one of the few positive distractions in my life after losing my training business of 15 years last week.

[snkstacres]

Not to take away from this thread but Laurie, you were one of the few really good horsepeople out there and to hear of you losing your training business just breaks my heart. I am so sorry. Really really sorry.

Wishing all in Ikes path well.

[Aggie4Bar]

I moved the horses north for Rita, and they ended up getting stronger winds and storm than we did in Houston. Figures, eh? :rolleyes: We're staying put this time around.

Laurie, they said on the radio this morning that the Texans vs. Ravens game would be delayed till Monday. I'm sure that's subject to change. All I've heard since Ike began turning this way is, "It better not ruin the game!" :lol: My SO, a borderline rabid football fan, was really excited to take me to my first NFL game this weekend, so he's pretty pissed off about the hurricane affecting his plans. Perhaps we should organize a hurricane party for those who'd rather be watching football? ;) I'm terribly sorry about your business. I wish you all the best for the future.

[texang73]

I am abit concerned, as I have a pre-planned trip for myself to Los Angeles, leaving tonight. I feel so guilty about going and not being here, but can't reschedule. :cry:

That said, even I was going to be here, the horses are staying put. I think where my guys are (southwest Houston) is inland enough that we'll get lots of rain and wind, but they're better off staying where they are than being stuck in a trailer somewhere on the road... :yes: I do have friends that will check on my guys and update if necessary.

[texang73]

So would it be totally selfish to admit that I am worried not only about all the people in the path of the hurricane, but also about the Ravens vs. Texans game being affected?! I know, I know not exactly the most important thing in life but one of the few positive distractions in my life after losing my training business of 15 years last week.

SO sorry to here about that Laurie! :cry:

[SGray]

I heard that the UT game has been cancelled -- don't know about the Texans

[cowgirljenn]

We evacuated most of the rescue horses in the area and my personal horses last night (and my cats). (The rest of the rescues are being evacuated by their adopters or foster homes). I got back this morning at 6am, loaded up the truck with stuff we couldn't stand to lose, and left. I'm at work with my husband, waiting for him to get cleared to leave so we can head back to CS where my ponies are waiting.

[Blinky]

We are staying put as well. Bringing the jumps in. Having everything full of water. T

[SGray]

am at the office - will have to prep. this evening

[Silence]

Oh jeez.

I, and the 9 horses in my care, are not looking forward to this.

[Laurierace]

I moved the horses north for Rita, and they ended up getting stronger winds and storm than we did in Houston. Figures, eh? :rolleyes: We're staying put this time around.

Laurie, they said on the radio this morning that the Texans vs. Ravens game would be delayed till Monday. I'm sure that's subject to change. All I've heard since Ike began turning this way is, "It better not ruin the game!" :lol: My SO, a borderline rabid football fan, was really excited to take me to my first NFL game this weekend, so he's pretty pissed off about the hurricane affecting his plans. Perhaps we should organize a hurricane party for those who'd rather be watching football? ;) I'm terribly sorry about your business. I wish you all the best for the future.

That may be what ends up happening but it hasn't been decided upon yet. Monday is an option as is moving it somewhere else, possibly even here to Baltimore. Of course that would be my first choice but I am more than a bit biased. The problem with moving it to Monday is there is no guarantee that things will be in any better shape than they are on Sunday. Power could still be out and roads could still be flooded. They said the league should have a decision made by 5pm tonight.
Whatever happens, I hope you and yours are all high and dry. With electricity!

[SGray]

we are supposed to report to the office in the morning and work until noon --- that's gonna be a traffic nightmare

[flshgordon]

we are supposed to report to the office in the morning and work until noon --- that's gonna be a traffic nightmare

Seriously? Call your boss and tell him that OEM has requested all offices to relieve non-essential personnel from reporting to work tomorrow! Our office closed today at noon so they could remove the computers from exterior offices (we're in a high rise).

Everyone be safe. I'm going to the barn in a bit to put leather halters on my horses and braid in the identification tags.

[SGray]

will be allowed to move computers to interior of building (28th and 29th floors) at 11:00 tomorrow --- now if Mayor Bill would close downtown.....

[Aggie4Bar]

we are supposed to report to the office in the morning and work until noon --- that's gonna be a traffic nightmareFor real?!? Wow...

I'm packing my office now and wondering if I should also take down pinned up items (i.e., beloved Dilbert comics... :D). This place will be a ghost town tomorrow. TranStar is already showing all the highways are clogged... :dead:

[birdsong]

Sounds like you guys are doing the smart thing and moving out!!

Ike sure dumped tons of rain on us here in SW Fl as it went past....this afternoon the clouds cleared and we have sunlight again....plus an extra 6-8" of water! (again)

I'm a freaked out storm watcher after the hurricanes of the past years.....

Everyone in its path is in my thoughts and prayers.

[Blinky]

We are not downtown but our lovely offices are projected to be open tomorrow! Thankfully most of us have laptops so in essence can work from home which is my plan. I'm hoping they come to their senses in the next hour!

Yikes-I hadn't thought of identification tags. Good reminder!

[Paris]

Anyone at the show in San Antonio? I guess with the turn to the north, San Antonio is hoping for not much weather and the show goes on?

[Laurierace]

Unofficial word is the Raven's vs. Texans game will be moved to Atlanta. Should have the official word by 6pm eastern.

[nervousalter]

Do you reckon they're going to evacuate Houston at some point? I know they're issuing mandatory evacuations in Brazoria but I just saw the Mayor on the news and he didn't make any mention of evacuating the city. I hope they don't wait until tomorrow to issue an order for Houston proper... I'm really scared of being stuck on the road when it hits.

[SGray]

really don't foresee a call to Houston itself

[Aggie4Bar]

I don't foresee a call for Houston either (some zip codes but not the entire area), but I think a lot of people are leaving anyway. My typically 20-minute non-highway commute home took me a solid hour. Even during the Rita chaos, side and back roads did not clog. I guess people learned to look for alternate routes????? Somehow, I need to get from Cypress to the Woodlands, and I'm dreading that effort...

[flshgordon]

No way they will evacuate the whole City. I think that would be physically impossible to get out 3-4 million people even with the contraflow lanes.

Good news it is looking like Ike has turned even a bit more to the east. Of course that's not so good for Galveston & neighbors to the east.

[SED]

Blinky and SGray -- I work for a law firm, which will do anything to make sure people bill hours, and even we are closed tomorrow. Hope your offices close too.

Having said that, I have a suspicion that this thing is going to turn east overnight, and that it may not be that big a deal here.

I hope so, since I am selling my house and we are supposed to close on Monday. Having any of the very old and tall trees fall on it this weekend would likely tank the deal, don't you think!?

My pony is sheltering in place at the boarding barn, where the emphasis is on removing jumps and anything else that could be a projectile.

We need the rain, by the way!

[DudMarv]

Hey guys,

Does anyone know of any rescue farms from the Houston-east Texas area that are going to evacuate to Austin? I helped during Hurricane Rita at the Travis expo center, and would love to do it again if any of them need help.

Am willing to clean stalls all day! Please let me know of anything!

Thanks,
Erin

[snkstacres]

I dont live close to this hurricane but here in N GA tonight, you cant move. Fuel is projected to go up $1.56 by tomorrow morning, most service stations are out, there is a 10 gal limit. Its dam dangerous to drive at this minute. The police are directing traffic. Bizarre as hell. Insane this panic.

[Tollriffic]

Most of the gas stations around me are completely sold out but I've managed to fill up a car and a truck today. We're moving a few around to local barns tomorrow but otherwise we're staying put. I was supposed to ride this afternoon but after 1/2 hour of sitting in traffic from my school in midtown didn't even get me to the freeway I called my trainer and scrapped that plan since it would be several hours before I could get there. We're going out to ride tomorrow morning then start moving everything before it starts rolling in around noon. Hopefully the storm surge will not be as bad as they are saying. One of my oldest friends lives on Clear Lake and is worried her house won't be there after Ike comes through.

[jilltx]

I moved the horses north for Rita, and they ended up getting stronger winds and storm than we did in Houston. Figures, eh? :rolleyes: We're staying put this time around.

Yup. That's why I'm not moving mine either.

Good luck everyone!!

[tx3dayeventer]

*fingers crossed for everyone down Houston way*

We still have a stall or 2 open for those that are late leaving.

We are North of San Antonio.

PM or email tx3dayeventer@yahoo.com

[tullio]

good luck everyone.... we are settling in and hoping for the best. when the forecast says the storm is going "up the 35 corridor" or somesuch, that's us. I was going to try to get gas tomorrow (may still be possible on post?) but we shall see.

be safe!!!

[Proud To Be Spotted]

I just wanted to wish everyone good luck. I'm off to work soon (no internet). I'm sick to my stomach terrified.

Please jingle that my horses are ok. When I left them yesterday I was crying thinking it may be the last time I see them.

Susan

[wildREDhorse]

Yes, there are some horses going to the Expo center... Know of at least one small barn that got out of the low lying areas early... Not sure how many others were able to sneak out. I think after the storm turned back at them yesterday AM it was probably too late to get out unless they made a mad dash.

They have told most people to stay where they are as it is safer than sitting in a car. Evacuating all of Houston wouldn't work... It would just be a big cluster f*ck. People are safer to stay in their homes. They have only evacuated a few low lying areas that are expected to really flood.

Keeping everyone in Texas in my thoughts and prayers.

[nervousalter]

Thanks for cluing me in. My apartment complex was clearing out and I sat there waiting and waiting all day for the order. Anyway, I left last night at 8pm headed to Austin. 10 was bumper to bumper - took me an hour and a half to get from the Katy Outlet Mall to Brookshire. Car and pooch were overheating, so I went up 359, zigged, zagged and finally got onto 290, which was crowded but flowing well. Checked into the hotel at 1:24am.

Unfortunately, my gelding is still in Houston. Barn he's at went through Hurricane Alicia, so I'm just praying he'll be safe. If not, I'm not getting another horse until I get my own truck and trailer. I'm worried to death about him.

[SGray]

am at the office - we are the only one in our building (and possibly in the entire 5 building complex) that are open

the building made us sign liability releases before we could enter - which is a little goofy as the storm is hours away

best (lack of) traffic ever though on the drive in

[Blinky]

So our offices did close after making the decision at 4pm yesterday!

SED-where are you moving to?

I rode last night and had no traffic issues getting there or getting home, but I take the back road.s It was peaceful..no birds, no wildlife.

We are at home but several of our neighbors took off.

[redhorse5]

Good luck to all who are there. I was scheduled to go to Houston today on business. Needless to say it was canceled.

Proud to be Spotted I really sympathize with you. We lived until last year in Indiana. The tornado activity was one of the reasons we moved to Kentucky. We have tornadoes here in Kentucky but nothing like we experienced in Indiana. It seemed like a weekly occurrence in Indiana during the spring.

I spent too many nights in my basement with the weather radio wondering if my horses were OK at the boarding barn. Now that I have them on my place I feel more in control.

Hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, mudslides, blizzards etc were part the reason we moved to Kentucky. You don't see much of that kind of thing here and we have terrific vets and farriers.

We'll keep everyone in our thoughts and prayers.

[Reds-n-Greys]

Sending prayers and good thoughts to all. Be safe!

PSA - Did hear from a friend who's husband works for a east coast gas supplier that wholesale gas prices jumped this morning - so FILL UP NOW!!!!!

[12hooves]

I've been watching Ike and it sure doesn't look good! Hope you all got out of low areas and you and your horses will be safe! They said not everyone evacuated Galveston??? That's crazy.

[SGray]

am off home now to fill up all available water containers

see ya'll later

[Frank B]

This morning one of the local (Northeast Tennessee) TV newsreaders said something about gas shortages and before long all the service stations looked like a flashback to the '70s. BO has a horse show this weekend and a Keuring next weekend. She's worried about the availability of Diesel.

Is this a local phenomena, or is anyone outside of the Houston area experiencing this? Our gas is a little under $4/gallon at the moment.

There is definitely an upside risk for prices and questionable availability according to The Wall Street Journal (http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2008/09/12/hurricane-ike-get-ready-for-soaring-gasoline-prices/). It'll probably be 2/3 days before the first damage assessments are released.

[jilltx]

I've been watching Ike and it sure doesn't look good! Hope you all got out of low areas and you and your horses will be safe! They said not everyone evacuated Galveston??? That's crazy.

Galveston is very prone to flooding, even with just a couple of inches of rain. I'm not surprised that some people are hanging on though. MOST of the house behind the seawall have been elevated, but i am sure it will get to a few. Some people just feel more safe staying put, even in Galveston.

Crossing fingers for everyone. I'm watching from Del Rio stressing a bit about Luna, but I'm getting text messages regularly that all is well...so far.

[MelantheLLC]

Regarding the price of gas, it will go up because of the number of refineries located on Galveston Bay, which are very likely to be put out of commission for some period of time. Something like 40% of the nation's refining capacity is along the Texas coast that will be hit by the storm surge.

I wish I could say this will not be a disaster, but it will be. I so hope everyone has evacuated from the mandatory evac areas. I heard a reporter who went down the highway toward High Island say that he came across cowboys moving 1600 head of cattle to higher ground. But the water is rising very fast. High Island was cut off much faster than ppl expected. Some who thought they still had time had to be rescued by the Coast Guard.

[Reds-n-Greys]

Gas here in SE PA jumped $ .20 a gallon at my local station between 7:30 and 10:30 this morning. GGGGRRRRR!!!!!:mad:

[DeeThbd]

Try this on...it jumped by over 13c/litre here in S. Ontario, or about 50 cents a gallon here overnight....and we are HUNDREDS of miles away from Texas. :confused:
Dee

[MSP]

We are getting the outer bands now in Jackson, MS. Far reaching and powerful feeling storm... it could be bad, I hope the city of Houston made the right choice.

Gas? Yup some stations are up $5 a gallon (so I hear from those out filling up now) and I was on "E" this morning and had to go to two stations; first one was out of everything but premium.

Here is the official word from my company, I don't think they would mind if I shared this.

Unfortunately, Hurricane Ike is barreling down on Houston Texas at a time when the industry is still recovering from shut downs due to Hurricane Gustav. Approximately 2,400,000 Barrels per day (BPD) of refining capacity was down for several days due to Gustav. The petroleum distribution system was just starting to “re-fill” when announced that Houston was the estimated landfall for Hurricane Ike.

As of this moment, it appears approximately 2,000,000 BPD capacity will be shut down for several days due to Hurricane Ike. If severe water damage occurs to any of these large refineries, they could be down for several months - as was the case in Katrina. The impact for Arkansas and other distribution points along the Texas Eastern Pipeline (TEPPCO) will further be impacted by a loss of 360,000 BPD capacity in TEPPCO’s line from the Gulf Coast to El Dorado, and 400,000 BPD capacity north of El Dorado. Pipeline downtimes are due to weather on the south end and lack of adequate supply from El Dorado and north.

As always, panic exacerbates fuel supply problems. The typical consumer fills his vehicle with fuel every 7 to 10 days and the distribution system can handle this. However, when all drivers fill their tanks in 1 or 2 days, the system simply will not handle the demand.



Hope every one stays safe!

[tx3dayeventer]

Hurricane Ike Update

• Hurricane Ike is imminent.

• Weather is already deteriorating along the coastline... long before the center will reach the coast. Hurricane Ike is already impacting not only Texas and Louisiana, but also Mississippi and Alabama with Tropical Storm force winds.

• Maximum sustained winds have increased to near 105 mph with higher gusts. Ike is still strengthening, and is forecast to be a category 3 hurricane before the center reaches the coast.

• Ike will threaten lives and will very likely have devastating consequences for power, environment, infrastructure, housing, debris, many forms of communications, health risks, sanitation, fuel, and more.

What you can do:

• Whether you are being instructed to evacuate or shelter in place, please do so and continue to listen to your local authorities.

• Also, closely follow news and weather reports and follow sheltering orders that are announced.

• As Secretary Chertoff said yesterday, "The most important message I can send is do not take this storm lightly. Do not look back at Gustav and say, `Well, that turned out to be not as bad as some people feared, therefore, I'm going to gamble with this storm.'"

• If you are not in a threatened area along the coast, you can help – donate to the American Red Cross and other voluntary organizations.

Additional Information Available Online

· How to Get Help

· Get Prepared

· Find Friends & Family

· Health & Safety

· Donate & Volunteer

· Hurricane Tracking

· What Government is Doing

· En español


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[desertmyst]

Well our barn is battened down and plenty of water ready to go. We are right in the path of the eye of the storm north of houston, I'm not sure what is going to happen here, but at least i know the horses are as safe as they can be and we are prepared. The only bad thing is that they don't have enough stalls for all the horses that are on pasture board, so they were brought up close to the barn and have shelters. Two of mine are in the barn and one is outside, I hope they are ok!!! I am just like 2 minutes down the road so as soon as this is over i'll be out there to check on them all! :sadsmile:

Can't believe those people that stayed in galveston, it is going under water!

[mpack]

praying for all...

[MistyBlue]

Just read this on MSN, my prayers for all in this area:

Ike’s 105-mph winds and potential 50-foot waves forced the Coast Guard to cancel a risky helicopter rescue of 22 people aboard a large freighter ship that broke down about 90 miles southeast of Galveston.
Galveston officials said as many as 40 percent of the city's 58,000 residents ignored the evacuation order.
In an interview with MSNBC, Perry said: “The biggest concern is getting any people who are left on the coast out of there."
“Now it’s time for prayers,” he said. Several residents in low-lying areas close to the gulf told NBC News that they had initially planned to try to ride out the storm but that they were spooked by the National Weather Service’s warning that so many homes would be destroyed and that “coastal residents refusing to evacuate face imminent and certain death.” :eek:

[Cashela]

I just wanted to say that I am thinking and praying for everyone.

[sickofcollege]

A few really valuable horses were evacuated from a BNT barn near Houston to our barn in Austin. I wondered why there was someone guarding these horses...

Come to find out that one of them is the Dubai International Arabian Champion Stallion who is owned by a Saudi prince and the others won at Qatar and Europe!!! :eek:

His four horses are valued at over 30 million dollars!!! That's why they are watching over them so carefully...

Here is the ONE stallion that the prince will allow to be bred to approved outside mares:

http://www.michaelbyattarabians.com/stallions/marwan_al_shaqab.asp

Here's me kicking myself in the behind :mad:

I had the chance to buy his full (gelded) brother for a steal!

[3DogNight]

Hoping and praying that everyone in the path of this storm stays safe. The coverage on the news stations is terrifying and the storm hasn't even made landfall yet.

[Tollriffic]

We've seen nothing more than a few raindrops and wind gusts in Houston but I've talked to several friends with houses on the west end in Galveston and they're pretty sure they're gone. Supposedly people have started losing power but so far so good for us.

[charismaryllis]

good boy:

http://www.comcast.net/news/hurricaneike/slideshow/view/20/

oh dear:

http://www.comcast.net/news/general/slideshow/view/news-general-20080903-NEWS-STORM-IKE-DC/

[BestKept]

Just watched a news clip that water is being pushed all the way up to greens bayou (thats a long way from the gulf for those of you not familiar w Houston) from the coast and flooding in the north already, and the storm hasn't even begun. Aw man, our lights are already flickering. We have a generator, but won't have AC....Stay safe everyone.....

[12hooves]

I just hope those people in Galveston and others will be OK. In 2004 we got hit by a cat 2 and then a cat 3, and we weren't even that close to the coast. It was pretty rough. I thought the first one was the worst but that's where we got most of the damage. I guess when the second one came, the damage was already done. After the storms we had to "camp-out" for awhile, but we were very lucky and got power back on in a few days. Some people on the very next block over had no power for weeks! We bought a generator after that and hope we never have to use it. Good Luck, Texas! Hunker down!!!

[SED]

Strong winds west of Houston, lights are flickering on and off. The air has that mysterious feel you get with certain thunderstorms. But so far not a drop of rain! Very strange.

[12hooves]

Strong winds west of Houston, lights are flickering on and off. The air has that mysterious feel you get with certain thunderstorms. But so far not a drop of rain! Very strange.

When the storm was going over our house it was really creepy. Things were thumping on the roof, and there was a weird constant rumble, kinda like a train in the distance. Before it hit the sky was a really weird greyish-green color. We also got hurricane Wilma, but by that time I was like, oh well, here comes another one. That one came and went real fast, and during the day, which is better than a night storm. We should have boarded up for Wilma, but from the forecast we didn't think we had to. I won't rely totally on the forecast anymore. If one's comin' my way, we're boarding up, and possibly gettin' outta here.

[wildREDhorse]

Last I heard Kemah was flooding... Does anyone know if Kathy O'Connor's barn was able to evacuate? Or the other barns on that side of town?..

[Tollriffic]

I would imagine Kathy left since most of that area was under a mandatory evacuation. While she is a ways from the water it isn't that far between her and Kemah. I know of at least one barn in that area that had all their horses hauled out 2 days ago so I would imagine most of the barns cleared out.

[wildREDhorse]

Glad to hear that.... I feel so out of the loop being halfway... no... whole way across the country... The news reports here are not much good... So I have just been worrying sick about everyone in Houston and surrounding areas.

[jilltx]

Kathy's barn is less than 2 blocks from the Bay. I'm certain she hauled out. A friend is in League City and at 8 he said the Kemah Boardwlk is TOTALLY engulfed in water.

I talked to my barn peeps (in Friendswood/Alvin) just an hour ago and they said lots of gusty win but not ONE drop of rain!

Take care everyone!!

[Blinky]

So far so good north side of Houston. My bro in law north of Sugarland, near hwy 6 has no power and no water as of 8:15pm.

[Dance_To_Oblivion]

10 pm here on the north side of Houston...enjoying my cocktail and watching some TV! Just a little windy!

Watching the clouds and the sunset was gorgeous!!

[wildREDhorse]

Thanks for the updates everyone. I have been in phone contact with family earlier this evening, but they were going to try to catch some shut eye in the meantime... Next contact will be tomorrow AM. So I appreciate the real updates rather than listening to the weather channel who is just playing the worst clips they can find and making it a drama. Got a text just now "windy and wet. dry so far." eh who knows... They are near the gulf.... .At least I don't have to panic yet..


All of you guys are in my prayers and thoughts. If you even have internet still... :(

[Portia]

Here close to downtown we've still not had any rain. Gusts of wind, but nothing beyond what we would get in a thunderstorm. According to the radar, that should be changing within the next hour or so. Actually as I type this, we just got a strong gust.

Thankfully Tex-Over (just South of Conroe) has good barns with new steel roofs. The REAL Portia and her foal Laken, and her yearling Heron, are all in stalls tonight. They had evacuee horses there, but I don't know where they came from.

Be safe everybody!

[4Martini]

Thinking of you in Colorado! Some of the news pictures look scary- I hope everyone stays safe!

[MistyBlue]

Everyone in the area okay this morning?

[tweeter]

Thinking lots of good thoughts for all our Texas peeps. CNN said that over a million people are without power. Guess we'll have to wait till daylight to see what it looks like down there, but I can only imagine.

So scarey.

[jilltx]

I just heard from my neighbors ad people in the area...my horses are fine and my house doesn't have any significant damage. LOTS of trees and branches down.

Crossing fingers for everyone!

[jackalini]

I've been in touch with a few people down there (as I just moved out of Houston in August) - everything seems to be alright.

Power is out for most of the city. There is a lot of flooding at the normal places, i.e. Allen Parkway and Montrose, I-10 and TC Jester, I-10 and 59, 45 and Main. There is a flash flood warning for the Medical Center, Memorial area (scary - that is where my mare used to be boarded), and some other parts of Midtown.

Just got word from Flshgordon that she and KB are ok, and their horses, boarded out in far west Houston are ok as well. SO glad to get that update.

Hope everyone else and their furry friends fared well.

I'm now waiting to see how bad it gets here in Granbury - my girl is boarded out with no room in the small barn for her, so I'm hoping that we don't get any tree-toppling winds and that she's just a touch windblown and wet.

[kb]

Things are a mess - but I even have power back on - woohoo!!!! The house sprung a few leaks, and I lost some trees - but made it through okay. But more importantly, the pony made it through okay! I will tell you - it was a very long night.

[tx3dayeventer]

I'm now waiting to see how bad it gets here in Granbury - my girl is boarded out with no room in the small barn for her, so I'm hoping that we don't get any tree-toppling winds and that she's just a touch windblown and wet.

I dont think we are going to get very high winds. I am 40 minutes south of you. I *think* it is going to be further east of us. Last I saw it was going up I-45 into Texarkana area not up I-35 like originally thought.

One of my students is at a huge barn in Sugarland and they got their horses shipped to north of Dallas on Thursday (why they went north of Dallas instead of west, I am not sure).

Glad to know that there was not catastrophic damage (ala Katrina, Hugo, etc.), besides flooding and some fires. It could have been MUCH worse.

[jilltx]

I dont think we are going to get very high winds. I am 40 minutes south of you. I *think* it is going to be further east of us. Last I saw it was going up I-45 into Texarkana area not up I-35 like originally thought.

One of my students is at a huge barn in Sugarland and they got their horses shipped to north of Dallas on Thursday (why they went north of Dallas instead of west, I am not sure).

Glad to know that there was not catastrophic damage (ala Katrina, Hugo, etc.), besides flooding and some fires. It could have been MUCH worse.


Probably the same reason I didn't move ine west; the storm was originally forecast to go in between Corpus/Matagorda bay which would have put anyone slightly west of Houston on the worst side.

I think you just can't win with these things. :(

Still crossing fingers for those that haven't checked in.

[tx3dayeventer]

Probably the same reason I didn't move ine west; the storm was originally forecast to go in between Corpus/Matagorda bay which would have put anyone slightly west of Houston on the worst side.

I think you just can't win with these things. :(

Still crossing fingers for those that haven't checked in.


True. My parents and many of my "retired show ponies" are in San Antonio. Mom was worried that they were going to get high winds and lots of rain.

We have been getting some screwy weather!!!! Lubbock got 8" of rain from a tropical storm that came from the West. Go figure!!!

The only reason Dallas and west (i.e. ME) are not going to get slammed is because of the high pressure from the Lubbock storm is pushing Ike east.

[nervousalter]

I was able to get in touch with Foxfire Farms off of South Post Oak in Houston at noon.

Trees have fallen, their electricity is out, their cells aren't working, the barn aisles are flooded and the roof of the walkway between the barn and the covered arena came down, but the barn held up and all 40-ish horses are safe.

Hope everyone else came through it as well.

[KathyR]

Good luck to everyone.

[tx3dayeventer]

I was able to get in touch with Foxfire Farms off of South Post Oak in Houston at noon.

Trees have fallen, their electricity is out, their cells aren't working, the barn aisles are flooded and the roof of the walkway between the barn and the covered arena came down, but the barn held up and all 40-ish horses are safe.

Hope everyone else came through it as well.
That is great news. Walkway roofs can be fixed and water can drain. Good to hear the horses are SAFE!

[jilltx]

Reports are similar from my barn. A couple of horses are sporting fancy new sky lights, and one barn is missing most of the roof, the barn that hold our shavings is gone, trees and branches down everywhere but the horses are all good!

Hoping for more god news around town and people are able to start checking in. :)

[tweeter]

Glad to see peeps checking in with no major problems. or injuries :)

It's amazing how many limbs and branches there are around after these things go thru. Think how good it is for the waistline as you're gathering them up :yes:

[jse]

I dont think we are going to get very high winds. I am 40 minutes south of you. I *think* it is going to be further east of us. Last I saw it was going up I-45 into Texarkana area not up I-35 like originally thought.

One of my students is at a huge barn in Sugarland and they got their horses shipped to north of Dallas on Thursday (why they went north of Dallas instead of west, I am not sure).

Glad to know that there was not catastrophic damage (ala Katrina, Hugo, etc.), besides flooding and some fires. It could have been MUCH worse.

Poor Galveston though, thank goodness there are no horses there that I know of. The man on Weather Channel said the last time he saw that much distruction was when Katrina rolled through. I have family there but they also have a house in Houston which I'm pretty sure they went to.
Glad to know everyone from here is seemingly ok!

[inca]

Hope Sonesta and ESG can check in soon.

All is well at both my place near Brenham and my College Station place. We stayed in Brenham last night at it was the worst between 2 and 6 am and then again around 10 or 11 this morning. Horses are fine and only damage is about 4 trees down and another 6 or so major limbs down. None of them close to the barn and the one tree that fell near the under contruction house did no damage. My horse that went thru Katrina (before I bought her) was the only nervous one. The rest were just hanging out in their stalls acting like nothing much was happening.

I haven't seen any evidence of any problems at all in College Station, which is good since over 160 horses, a bunch of small animals and lots of people evacuated TO College Station and are being sheltered here.

The pictures of the destruction in downtown Houston are incredible. Hope everyone is safe.

[cholmberg]

We saw two full on convoys of
power trucks headed west today. They are quite obviously
headed to Texas, complete with their own generators.
Saw them on I-10 today. Both had quite an impressive
amount of trucks.

[Janet]

Any word on how cell phone service is holding up?

[jackalini]

Hope Sonesta and ESG can check in soon.

Sonesta is, I believe, up here in Fort Worth for the Horse Expo at Will Rogers with her Knabstruppers.

Haven't heard from ESG other than Friday that she had everything battened down and they were ready (as I would expect).

[jackalini]

Any word on how cell phone service is holding up?

Well, from what I've experienced, it is easier to send and receive text messages at this point, but I have been able to get through to most everyone down there on all networks, including AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile.

The 2 big problems with phone services currently are:
-Phones that are based on towers in areas with heavy damage and continued power outages are not getting service. Those with satellite service are doing fine.
-Low/dead battery. If you don't have a car charger and available car to charge your phone, then you are out of luck, as many people are still without power and therefore the ability to charge their phones that I'm sure they used a ton yesterday.

I've heard back from a few people with Blackberries via email, so those are up and running, too.

[Dance_To_Oblivion]

Cell service is garbage right now! I have Verizon and the only thing that is really working is email (love my Blackberry!). Power is back though so that makes life much easier!

[Rift]

ESG and Sonesta should be in good shape as they are around the corner from me. We weathered everything fine, just wet and tired. The problem today is that Big ad Little Cypress creek are flooding so Cypress Equestrian Center is under again, not that it wasn't expected so I hope that they had everyone out. I was there during Allison *shudder* and would much rather deal with the likes of Ike than the flooding we had then. Power just came on over here in Cypress late this afternoon but was still out at the barn last I checked so who knows how long the rural areas will be. Hope everyone is o.k.

[tikidoc]

Poor Galveston though, thank goodness there are no horses there that I know of. The man on Weather Channel said the last time he saw that much distruction was when Katrina rolled through. I have family there but they also have a house in Houston which I'm pretty sure they went to.
Glad to know everyone from here is seemingly ok!

There was a place on the west end on the gulf side back when I lived there ('94-'01), but it may have closed. Not really a boarding barn - they mostly did trail rides on the beach. It was just a bit past where the seawall ended. If they are still there, I hope they got the horses out, because the west end appears to be pretty well trashed. I am still waiting to hear from my former boss who lives down that way on the bay side. My friends from Tiki Island got out OK but I don't know if their house made it.

Anybody out there know how Bayview Equestrian Center near Kemah fared? That is where I boarded when I lived on Tiki.

[wildREDhorse]

I just got word that parts of Baytown have power at the moment! Go Texans! Gettin things done!

[Tollriffic]

We made it through but took a beating. Weve got water back but no power.One of the power line poles is snapped in two and pulled others down so were not expecting power for more than a week.Hopefully we can find a generator tomorrow.Lots of trees through homes and only a handful of stores open with no ice or gas.The horses are fine but weve got a rough couple of weeks ahead

[BasqueMom]

Have read where Habitat for Horses farm outside of Galveston had a lot of damage. Horses
and people okay. Check out www.habitatforhorses.org.

[cholmberg]

I just got word that parts of Baytown have power at the moment! Go Texans! Gettin things done!

well. . they have a lot of
help right now. There's been a steady stream of assistance from
other power companies in other states making their way to Texas.
We went over to Mobile today and saw two more
convoys of power line trucks, and a smaller train of big asplundh tree trucks.

[grayarabs]

We are safe here - family, dogs and horses. My horse is boarded about four miles from me - had to wait until noon Saturday to hear anything - so happy to learn he was ok.
That was one rough storm - but know it could have been worse. I live in a townhouse in NW Houston ie 249/1960 area - would really like to know the wind speeds. I have a huge oak and pine close by my bedroom window - so I slept in the kitchen on the sofa - with dog in crate right by me. I just knew the trees would fall or snap. Amazingly they did not - but limbs everywhere - and none on the house. Incredible. It is awful to listen to the wind and wonder how much worse it will get - and waiting for it to stop. No idea of anything - what part of storm we got - eye - etc. I was so worried about the animals outside - ie horses. Saturday morning still windy - but Saturday night absolutely no wind - when we needed it - for a breeze - when we lost power. Sat. night we had a "teaser" power start up - power came on twice for a couple of minutes - then we heard a bit boom - and then no more power. Last night surprised and so happy when power came back on.
Three things:
Someone said that the boom we heard - transformer? blew - perhaps because so many people left all their appliances on - and overloaded things? Could that be true?
I had everything unplugged and A/C off. If there is any truth to this - that should have been made known to the public - ie keep things off - then after power restored - to slowly run things you need.
Phones: Cell phone problems - cordless house phones need power - but I have an old land-line phone - I think is the one for my computer (?) - anyway - that phone always works when power out.
Generators: Learning to hate them. Saturday all the neighbors got out to clean up things around the property - except for the man/family behind me. He had a generator - loud and really smelling things up. He and family sat inside and watched TV and had fans on - while others out working. Then we wanted to come in and open windows and could not because of the horrible smell and noise from his generator. I mean no one could open a window for air because of his generator - and he was a real a** about it. Again - this is townhouse situation so we are close together. We all learned to hate the generators.
(and him). Different story - single family houses - but not in this situation.
Anyway - we all feel fortunate - those of us inland - that stayed and did not suffer the damage and losses we could have. Still would like to know wind speeds - sustained and gusts.
Lastly - another COTH'er - Cyndi - lives south of town - hope she checks in - reporting all safe.

[MSP]

Anyone know what shape West Houston, SugarLand area is in?

I have a friend I haven't heard from and can't get in touch with. I have been waiting patiently but my worrying is getting caught up to me.

Do they have power, cell phone, food, gas?????? My friend just moved there in August and her mother is visiting from Brazil; she is not used to hurricanes. I don't even have her address because she is staying in a temporary apartment. :(

[J-Lu]

MSP,

Our barn is in Fulshear and we made it through OK. We did alot of preparation and we had stable buildings, and we mostly had downed trees, some broken fences and soggy pastures. No horse issues at all. We lost power for days, though.

A friend of mine weathered the storm in Sugarland and he said the power outages were minimal around where he was (lost power of only 8 or so hours). Katy and Richmond largely got power back on Sunday although pockets were still out.

I can tell you that the cell phone reception has been pretty bad and the texting doesn't always work well, either. Don't fret just yet! It might be that your friend is cut off from the outside world!

J.

[MSP]

Thanks, and that is good to hear.

Maybe I will try to reach her at work, assuming some of downtown is up and running.

[backinthesaddle50]

Any news from on how they fared?

[Sukey1971]

Bayview Equestrian is at the Lone Star Conference Center & arena in Conroe. Their barn came through fine, according to Kathy O'Connor. It is built to withstand a category 3 storm and Ike was a 2. They also have that high cliff that protected them from the storm surge. The barn has no water or power right now so they are staying in Conroe a while longer. Kathy is fine and so are her horses and workers.

[altjaeger]

Any word about Melanie Kirsche and North Houston Horse Park? Her phone isn't being answered. I know she had 4 light metal buildings that almost certainly would have been damaged or blown down/away.

[cowgirljenn]

I started my own thread - but we completely lost our barn, our hay, and feed. House is going to take a LOT of repairs and isn't livable right now.

[SGray]

Here close to downtown we've still not had any rain. Gusts of wind, but nothing beyond what we would get in a thunderstorm. According to the radar, that should be changing within the next hour or so. Actually as I type this, we just got a strong gust.

Thankfully Tex-Over (just South of Conroe) has good barns with new steel roofs. The REAL Portia and her foal Laken, and her yearling Heron, are all in stalls tonight. They had evacuee horses there, but I don't know where they came from.

Be safe everybody!

Portia, did Texover fair okay? since Ike traveled up 45?
and your home?

Honeybrook Farm near me lost some trees, some fences and their roundpen but barn/arena/houses okay

I only lost some tree limbs and one bit of fence smushed

power still out - thus no water but I filled up about 300 gal. worth of containers for horses on Friday afternoon so they are good for a while yet

I, on the other hand, am not looking my best as my cool rainwater baths have not extended to washing hair but by god I am back at the office this morning as per request

[backinthesaddle50]

Thanks Sukey1971 for the update on Kathy's barn. Glad to hear it is intact. Part of our group is still at the Expo in Travis County. The staff there have been extremely accomodating.

[tikidoc]

Thanks Sukey1971. If you talk to Kathy, please tell her that Jessica (who owned Rocky the draft cross and moved to Tennessee) sends best wishes.

[BestKept]

We made it FM1488/2978 ok. Lots of trees down but somehow only one section of fence to repair thankfully. Lesson learned @ water though. I filled stall buckets, and a muck bucket.
Next time fill every available container, trash can, whatever is avail. in the barn. I had to walk water from the pasture trough to the stalls. That was almost empty Sun, I was eyeballing the pool water next, and thankfully we got electric back to our subd private well.
Power is another story, the subd just behind ours begins the entergy grid (Conroe) They are saying 4 weeks or more....I just cannot imagine....
Grocery store Kroger here is nearly bare. Has anyone been to Spring Creek feed? I have another week of feed and hay. Hoping that supply begins to come in....
Maybe we need a thread on open/supplied feed stores in the area....

[J-Lu]

Power is another story, the subd just behind ours begins the entergy grid (Conroe) They are saying 4 weeks or more....I just cannot imagine....
Grocery store Kroger here is nearly bare. Has anyone been to Spring Creek feed? I have another week of feed and hay. Hoping that supply begins to come in....
Maybe we need a thread on open/supplied feed stores in the area....

Not a bad idea. Steinhausers in Richmond was open, where we purchased additional shavings on Sunday. They have feed, too. I think the Steinhausers in Brookshire is also open (on Rt.10). It might be a drive for you but there's gas in Brookshire, unlike Houston. I burn less gas going to Fulshear than I do going 4 miles through the stop-and-go intersections in Houston.

[Aggie4Bar]

I moved my horses to a new barn near FM2920/FM2978 at the start of this month. Barns are top-notch, and all the horses made it through great. No power though. Some very impressive lumber scattered about the place and over the driveway. Texted former BO in Cypress, and she's doing well except for missing part of the roof of the smaller barn. My coach and her horses are fine in the Heights, but her house is flooded. She and her husband had also just purchased a home on Bolivar a few weeks ago, which really broke my heart to think about. But it's still standing! Aerial photos don't look too bad, but... no way to know yet just how extensive the damage is. Bolivar got rolled.

We're still out of power in the Woodlands. Entergy sustained a lot of grid damage, so there's no telling how long before the power is back. The most positive estimate I've heard so far is next week. I've also heard four weeks minimum. No school for the kids as Conroe ISD is out at least through Friday. I won't be surprised if the school closures continue into next week.

I've seen some really massive floods before, but I've never seen this many trees broken, uprooted, and/or blown apart in shards or powerlines ripped down and strewn about like silly string. It's impressive. More impressive, however, is how well some local businesses are managing to stay open and organized. Major kudos to them and their staffs!

ETA: I got an email this morning that Mezzanotte Ristorante (Grant @ Louetta in Cypress) and Capriccio (Jones Rd) are handing out ice and water for those in need and are also offering refrigerator space for medications.

[SED]

Fincastle Farm in west Houston (Hwy 6/Bear Creek area) came through fine. In fact, the arenas drained well and everyone was riding on Monday! Lost some trees, but not too bad. All horses are fine and, reportedly, the only "disaster" is that they were pissed off they got breakfast 1 hour late Saturday morning.

My house has no power. Actually, both my houses have no power. I had bought one, and was to close Monday on the old one. Two mortgages for the indefinate future....

[ESG]

Things went well for us in Cypress. Power was out until yesterday afternoon at around 1PM, and that only because my asshat neighbor to the east didn't feel compelled to check her property and notice the tree that had taken down two power lines! :rolleyes: Anyway, the gods of Centerpoint and Trees, Inc., smiled on us and we had lights and power again last night. Some large limbs down, and our neighbor across the street's fence looks like someone played Pickup Sticks with it (I'm positive we had a small tornado here), but no lives were lost, and no injuries. Our house and barn both came through unscathed as well, but there's an almighty lot of tree trash to be dealt with. Very, very fortunate, and I'm grateful.

[SGray]

power is up to south and west of me - not for my street yet but I'm mapped to have it by end of day Friday - YEAH

[SGray]

got power some time between 4:30 and 5:00 yesterday afternoon - had a wonderful HOT shower last night

[tikidoc]

Yesterday, I spoke to a close friend who is on Tiki Island (my former home). Most of the houses made it through but the blow away garages are gone, as are many of the boat docks (and boats). Water and sewer pipes as well as electrical boxes were ripped out of the ground. The ground is littered with black mud, jet skis, walls, freezers, contents of said freezers, now thawed (ick), and other debris. The water is hooked up on Tiki, and they are allowed in from dawn to dusk to clean up. It is going to be a long haul.

My former boss lives on the west end of Galveston, on the bay side. He had two houses, a small older wood stilt house that they lived in while building their main house, and the new house. The new house made it (damaged but repairable), the little house is totally demolished.

Overall, they fared much better than they could have. The eye went over Galveston, rather than just to the west, as was expected. Had it done that, Galveston would likely look more like Boliver does now.

[SGray]

did you see those photos of the sand tubes? looks like they really helped

[texang73]

Both my guys rode out the storm, and faired very well. Where I board the younger one, the place is a bit of a mess (Blue Fox Farms, Hwy 288 and Bltwy 8).

Lots of downed limbs and several downed trees. The new barn survived well (that's where the horses that stayed were put for the duration), the second older barn had some missing roof, but repairable. The oldest barn had about half it's roof collapse and stalls flooded. Still no power or water at the moment (waterwell needs a elec. pump to work), so horses that are there (just about 10, the rest are all still evacuated), are being watered by hand.

But, overall, we did OK. No injuries or lives lost.

[jilltx]

Portia, did Texover fair okay? since Ike traveled up 45?
and your home?

Honeybrook Farm near me lost some trees, some fences and their roundpen but barn/arena/houses okay

I only lost some tree limbs and one bit of fence smushed

power still out - thus no water but I filled up about 300 gal. worth of containers for horses on Friday afternoon so they are good for a while yet

I, on the other hand, am not looking my best as my cool rainwater baths have not extended to washing hair but by god I am back at the office this morning as per request

I'm glad to hear that Honeybrook is alright. :) I had planned to take Luna up to her place (she said she might have room), but decided to stay put.

Luna now has power and a nice fan running...but we're still impired at the house. We ventured up to the farm for the weekend to take a little AC break from clearing the raking.

Glad to catch up a bit and hear that everyone is relatively fine.