...A BRIEF HISTORY OF HURRICANES ALONG THE TEXAS COAST...

HURRICANES HAVE BEEN PART OF TEXAS COASTAL HISTORY AS LONG AS THE 
STATE HAS BEEN INHABITED. 

THE GREAT GALVESTON HURRICANE OF SEPTEMBER 8...1900...REMAINS THE 
WORST NATURAL DISASTER IN THE UNITED STATES IN NUMBERS OF LIVES LOST.  
THE DEATHS CAN ONLY BE GUESSED AT; HOWEVER...8000 IS THE ESTIMATE MOST 
FREQUENTLY USED.  IN 1900 THE POPULATION OF GALVESTON WAS SLIGHTLY 
OVER 20,000.  DRIVEN BY WINDS IN EXCESS OF 125 MPH...THE RAGING GULF 
WATERS COVERED THE ISLAND TO A DEPTH UP TO 15 FEET.   BUILDINGS MADE 
OF WOOD FLOATED OFF THEIR PILINGS AND SMASHED INTO ONE ANOTHER 
WITH GREAT DESTRUCTION.  AS HOUSES DISINTEGRATED...THE UNFORTUNATE 
OCCUPANTS WERE THRUST INTO THE WATER TO DROWN.  THE LOCAL WEATHER 
OFFICE HAD SOUNDED THE ALARM ON THE PREVIOUS DAY...AND OVER TEN 
THOUSAND INHABITANTS FLED TO INLAND LOCATIONS. AN ACTION THAT NO 
DOUBT SAVED THEIR LIVES.  OF THE TEN THOUSAND  OR SO RESIDENTS WHO 
DID NOT EVACUATE...FEWER THAN TWO THOUSAND SURVIVED.  

IN ITS EARLY HISTORY...THE COASTAL BEND AREA FELT A FALSE SENSE OF
SECURITY AGAINST HURRICANES. CORPUS CHRISTI...WITH ITS HIGH BLUFF AND
THE PROTECTIVE BARRIER ISLAND...FELT PARTICULARLY SAFE.  LOCAL
NEWSPAPERS AS EARLY AS 1886 REFERRED TO CORPUS CHRISTI AS "THE ONLY
REALLY SAFE PLACE ON THE TEXAS COAST."  THIS FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY
PROVED TO BE DISASTROUS.  THE GREAT HURRICANE OF SEPTEMBER 14...1919...
MOVED INLAND SOME 25 MILES SOUTH OF CORPUS CHRISTI...PUTTING THE CITY
IN THE DREADED RIGHT FRONT QUADRANT WHERE THE STRONGEST WINDS AND
HIGHEST STORM SURGES NORMALLY OCCUR.  WHEN THE EVENT HAD ENDED...
THE BEACHES WERE LITTERED WITH DEBRIS AND BODIES.  NEARLY 300
PERSONS DIED AND DAMAGE EXCEEDED 20 MILLION DOLLARS.

NO LIST COULD BE COMPLETE WITHOUT CARLA...WHICH MADE LANDFALL 
NEAR PORT LAVACA ON SEPTEMBER 11...1961.  CARLA WAS AMONG THE 
LARGEST HURRICANES OF HISTORICAL RECORD...WITH ALL OF THE DAMAGING
HURRICANE ELEMENTS.  IT PRODUCED MANY TORNADOES...PEAK WINDS
ESTIMATED TO 175 MPH...TORRENTIAL RAINS...AND A STORM SURGE OF 19 FEET
AT PORT LAVACA. THE DEATH TOLL OF ONLY 46 PERSONS CAN BE ATTRIBUTED
IN PART TO WHAT AT THE TIME WAS THE LARGEST PEACE TIME EVACUATION
OF AN AREA IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD.  A QUARTER MILLION PEOPLE
LEFT THE MIDDLE AND UPPER TEXAS COASTS FOR SAFETY.

RECENT DECADES HAVE SEEN DRAMATIC SHIFTS IN NUMBER AND INTENSITY OF 
HURRICANES.  AFTER THE DEVASTATING EVENTS OF THE 1960S...INCLUDING 
HURRICANES CARLA...CINDY AND BEULAH...THE 1970S BROUGHT ONLY TWO 
HURRICANES.  BUT ONE OF THOSE WAS CELIA...WHOSE DEVASTATING WINDS 
CUT A WIDE PATH OF DESTRUCTION FROM CORPUS CHRISTI WESTWARD INTO 
THE MOUNTAINS OF MEXICO.  THE 1980S BROUGHT WITH THEM FIVE MORE 
HURRICANES...A VERY LARGE NUMBER FOR ANY TEN YEAR PERIOD.  AMONG 
THOSE WAS GIGANTIC HURRICANE ALLEN...WHICH NEARLY COVERED THE GULF 
AS IT TRACKED TOWARD THE TEXAS COAST.  ONLY A MIRACULOUS DECREASE 
IN INTENSITY AS IT MOVED ONSHORE BETWEEN CORPUS CHRISTI AND 
BROWNSVILLE PRESENT A GREAT LOSS OF LIFE.

WE TEXANS HAVE BEEN FORTUNATE IN THE PAST DECADE OF THE 1990S.  
ONLY ONE HURRICANE...BRET...CROSSED THE STATE COASTLINE DURING THE TEN 
YEAR STRETCH.  AGAIN...THIS VERY INTENSE HURRICANE WEAKENED AS IT 
CROSSED THE COAST  SOUTH OF CORPUS CHRISTI.  SO FAR IN THIS  NEW 
DECADE...ONLY HURRICANE CLAUDETTE HAS STRUCK THE STATE.   

OF COURSE...IT DOES NOT TAKE A HURRICANE TO CAUSE DAMAGE OR LOST
LIVES. NOR IS THE EFFECT OF A STORM RESTRICTED TO THE COAST.  TEXAS 
HISTORY IS FILLED WITH RECORD RAINFALLS FROM TROPICAL STORMS THAT 
NEVER REACHED HURRICANE STRENGTH.  IN 1978...TROPICAL STORM AMELIA 
MOVED INTO THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY AND DROPPED 48 INCHES OF RAIN IN 
JUST OVER TWO DAYS.  THE NEXT YEAR...TROPICAL STORM CLAUDETTE STRUCK 
THE HOUSTON/GALVESTON AREA WITH AN UNBELIEVABLE 43 INCHES OF RAIN 
IN JUST 24 HOURS.  IN 1998...TROPICAL STORM CHARLEY CAUSED MANY DEATHS 
AND MILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF DESTRUCTION AS IT PRODUCED 18 INCHES OF 
RAIN IN JUST OVER 4 HOURS.  AND THE LATEST RECORD BREAKER WAS 
TROPICAL STORM ALLISON IN 2001 WHICH BROUGHT 32 INCHES OF RAIN AND 
OVER 5 BILLION DOLLARS OF DAMAGE TO SOUTHEAST TEXAS.

SINCE WE CANNOT PREVENT HURRICANES...THE NEXT BEST THING IS TO KNOW
WHAT THEY CAN DO AND BE PREPARED.  REMEMBER THAT THOSE WHO DO NOT
STUDY HISTORY ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT IT.