Wednesday, August 26, 2020

"Galveston Island could be first major community in Texas hit by Hurricane Laura."

In 1900 the residents of Galveston didn't realize they had to get out of there. These days that could never happen.

Wikipedia - 1900 Galveston hurricane

The Great Galveston hurricane, known regionally as the Great Storm of 1900, was the deadliest natural disaster in United States history and the fourth-deadliest Atlantic hurricane overall. The hurricane left between 6,000 and 12,000 fatalities in the United States; the number most cited in official reports is 8,000. Most of these deaths occurred in and near Galveston, Texas, after storm surge inundated the coastline with 8 to 12 ft (2.4 to 3.7 m) of water. In addition to the number killed, the storm destroyed about 7,000 buildings of all uses in Galveston, which included 3,636 destroyed homes; every dwelling in the city suffered some degree of damage. The hurricane left approximately 10,000 people in the city homeless, out of a total population of nearly 38,000. The disaster ended the Golden Era of Galveston, as the hurricane alarmed potential investors, who turned to Houston instead. In response to the storm, three engineers designed and oversaw plans to raise the Gulf of Mexico shoreline of Galveston island by 17 ft (5.2 m) and erect a 10 mi (16 km) seawall.

1900 Storm Memorial -- This 10-foot-tall bronze sculpture on the Galveston seawall portrays a family - a father, mother and child - clinging together. One of the man's arms is reaching for the sky, and the other is around his wife. She is cradling their baby in her arms.

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