Death toll climbs to 28 in Ike aftermath

More and more damage reports are beginning to come out of Galveston, Bolivar, and areas surrounding Galveston bay. Unfortunately, the death toll has climbed to 28 from the storm, and will probably climb higher once all of the devestated areas have been searched.

There will be complaints against the city and county, but they issued mandatory evacuation orders, and people chose to stay and weather the storm even though they were warned that it would be deadly and dangerous to do so. If anything, this should emphasise the need to listen to city and county officials when they urge people to evacuate.

I can tell you -- on a personal note -- having grown up vacationing in Galveston and on Bolivar, my heart breaks for those living in these communities. They will rebuild, but it will be a long time before Galveston and Bolivar have recovered enough that they resemble the cities I knew in my youth.

Dallas Morning News has pictures of a devestated Bolivar Peninsula. The areal photos show an island scraped clean. ABC 13 out of Houston continues to live stream coverage of Ike's aftermath. And, as usual, stay tuned to Severe Studios for continuing coverage.