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Ike Roars Through Gulf Coast
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Despite the extensive physical damage and worries about fatalities on Galveston, Perry said, "the worst-case scenario that was spoken about . . . did not occur."
Houston and Galveston were spared the worst because of a slight, last-minute shift of the storm's track to the north, U.S. officials said in Washington.
The storm hit Galveston Bay "more or less dead on" landing at or just north of the city -- rather than just south as expected -- and its most powerful winds and water also landed to the north of the city because of the rotation of the storm, Michael Chertoff, the homeland security secretary, told reporters.
"That wound up slightly, somewhat diminishing the worst-case scenario," Chertoff said. The shift brought a surge of nine to 16 feet to most of the Houston area, instead of the 20 feet initially forecast. "It still was a very substantial surge, and we should not minimize the impact of that," he said.
Ike was the first major hurricane to hit a densely populated urban area since Katrina devastated New Orleans in 2005, and Ike was the first to score a direct hit on Houston since Alicia 25 years ago. Houston has 2.2 million residents, part of a sprawling metropolitan area of 5.6 million people.
On Saturday, some downtown streets were largely impassable, with several intersections flooded and many others blocked by downed trees, power lines, dangling streetlights and other debris.
The Buffalo Bayou, which meanders through downtown Houston, overtopped its banks, sending water gushing onto the picturesque Allen Parkway and other adjacent roads.
The 75-story JPMorgan Chase Tower -- the tallest building in the state at 1,000 feet -- was hit hard by Ike's winds, which shattered most of the windows on the eastern side of the building and sent furniture, desktop computers, window blinds and files hurtling onto the streets.
Other office towers, including the old Enron headquarters, also suffered significant damage.
Freeways around the city were strewn with twisted metal from billboards that had toppled. On city streets, some utility poles had snapped and were dangling precariously, while at some intersections traffic lights swung in the winds. A towering McDonald's sign over an outlet on Bellfort Avenue was destroyed, with only the golden arches and a small patch of red left standing. Some cars that were abandoned by their drivers sat in water up to their windows.
Reliant Stadium, home to the NFL's Houston Texans, sustained roof damage, and Monday's scheduled game with the Baltimore Ravens was postponed.
A landmark restaurant, Brennan's, just south of downtown, was destroyed by a wind-whipped fire that erupted after midnight. Three people were injured in the blaze.
