Hurricane Ike ravaged Haiti and Cuba before entering the Gulf of Mexico. Folks from the southern tip of Texas to Florida worried whether they would be hit. It looked like it would be Louisiana, then the southern coast of Texas. With apologies to the few people who live there, the best landfall would have been just above Brownsville, TX. Few people inhabit the area between Brownsville and Corpus Christi, TX. It is taken up with the King Ranch. Few would have been harmed outside of a few cows, nilgai, and javelina. Other hurricanes have swept through that area with little damage. I shared this information with God. Apparently He was not impressed.
After all the varied forecasts, Ike ended up roaring right into the area just south of Galveston, TX. God answered many prayers in that Ike never strengthened over a high category two hurricane. Its top winds were 110 miles per hour; one mile shy of a category three. The experts were convinced Ike would increase to a category three or four. I enjoy it when the experts are wrong. I will say, however, that I am amazed at how well the experts actually do in predicting the path of a hurricane. Maybe this time, as far as the strength of the hurricane, God overruled the experts.
Wednesday night Bible Study & Prayer meeting we discussed Psalm 46. We had a special time of prayer about the hurricane. Prayed for those who had been affected, and those who would be. We also determined to receive a special offering in the next Sunday or two for Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (NAMB & IMB). We decided to do this whether Ike hit us or not. Some has already been given.
I confess I was wrong on several counts. I thought there was a good chance Ike would continue to veer east over to the Texas Louisiana border like Hurricane Rita. It did not. I thought it would weaken from a category two to perhaps a one or even to a tropical storm as it made landfall. It did not. I did not realize how large in size the storm was, or how long it would last.
So, in all my wisdom, sitting right above the bays, the Houston Ship Channel, and the mouth of the San Jacinto River, I chose to ride out the hurricane. I live in Highlands, TX just above Baytown and five miles north of the San Jacinto Battleground Monument (where Texas won its independence in 1836). We have a suburb just to our west called Houston. So you have Galveston Island, the bays, then Baytown, Highlands, and Houston.
I gathered up a few odds and ends from my house and from the church yard that might blow away in a storm. The church and parsonage are two or three miles apart. I braced objects against the inside of the garage doors to keep them from blowing in and did the same with a sliding glass door. I filled a pitcher and a couple of buckets with water. I filled my car with gas and had a couple more gallons in a gasoline can. By the time it was pretty certain the hurricane would hit here, the stores began to fill up. Then I did not get more supplies because I just didn’t want to wait in a long line at the store. Packaged foods that don’t need to be heated or kept cold, can be a handy thing to have.
Something I won’t do again; I have a small generator 70 miles away that I did not retrieve. A small generator costs about $300. A generator, a couple of cans of gas and some oil are priceless during and after a hurricane.
Several families expressed an interest in staying at Northside Baptist Church, Highlands overnight. We welcomed them. One extended family of eight did so. I stayed at the church most of the day Thursday and Friday. Ike began to arrive Friday morning. Friday morning was a nice day, just a little gusty. It has always amazed me how nice the weather can be just before a hurricane. I went home about 5:30 pm wanting to watch the world news. That was impossible since all local stations were covering the storm 24 hours and I don’t have cable. I think one reason people panic is because they hear the storm news 24/7. It’s nice to have an occasional break from it all.
Well, I should have done more preparation. I knew to do more, but I didn’t. I chose to ride it out for several reasons. Three years ago I left when Hurricane Rita was coming. I drove an older member of our church to our association’s encampment between Livingston and Woodville, TX. The drive to get there was a nightmare with everyone evacuating, and the storm bypassed our homes but hit us dead center at Lake Tomahawk Encampment. I could write a book about that ordeal. Also, I thought it would be good as a pastor, to stay close to the church. Friday I called a few church folks and assured them of my concern and prayers.
I also called my atheist friend Rita and invited her to spend the night with the others at Northside. She appreciated the invitation but decided to ride out the storm alone in her mobile home. She called me the next day and was fine. I think the Lord was watching out for her. She is my friend and I pray that God will one day open her eyes.
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-David R. Brumbelow, Highlands, Texas. September 14, AD 2008
