ALERT: Ike's Storm Surge Equal To Katrina's

Huge storm surges are expected, and the storm's impact could extend more than 500 miles. Currently, the hurricane takes up nearly 40 percent of the Gulf of Mexico.

The center of the storm was located about 365 miles east of Corpus Christi, Texas, and about 230 miles southeast of Galveston, Texas, the National Hurricane Center said in its 8 a.m. ET report. - NPR

clipped from www.npr.org All Things Considered, September 12, 2008 · Ike is churning toward the Gulf Coast of Texas. Storm surge and extreme flooding as far north as Houston are major threats. Mark Fox, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, says the storm surge will likely be as bad as those caused by Hurricane Katrina. The National Weather Service didn't mince words as it issued a strong warning for residents in low-lying coastal areas around Galveston. The service's statement read that those ignoring the evacuation order faced certain death. Ike is still a Category 2 storm, packing winds of 105 mph, but it was expected to strengthen into a Category 3 storm as it approaches the northeastern Texas coast. Ike was expected to make landfall early Saturday southwest of Galveston, a barrier island and beach town about 50 miles southeast of downtown Houston and the scene of the nation's deadliest hurricane, the great storm of 1900 that left at least 6,000 dead.