Galveston Like A Ghost Town After Ike

GALVESTON, Texas (AP) – Tourist-popular Galveston seems more like a debris-ridden ghost town today after Hurricane Ike.

About 20 Longhorns roamed the empty neighborhoods. The west end of Galveston island, while dotted with expensive homes, had undeveloped grazing lands.

Deputy city manager Brandon Wade toured the destruction with some reporters today.

Hurricane Ike lowered the beachfront sand by as much as five feet.

Many homes in Galveston’s west end, protected by the city’s seawall, made it through the weekend hurricane with minimal damage.

But others in a neighborhood of one- and two-story homes called Spanish Grant Beachside, erected on cement pilings with garagesbeneath the first floor, were pounded to rubble.

Residents are being urged to stay away since Galveston is without water, electricity and provisions.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)