Tropical Storm Ike became Hurricane Ike, the fifth hurricane of the 2008 season, on August 3, 2008. Having ravaged coastlines in Cuba and the islands of Turks and Caicos, Ike made landfall in the Galveston Bay area of Texas, in the early hours of Saturday, September 13. By 9:00 a.m. EST Ike had weakened to a Category 1 hurricane as it moved inland.Associated Press: Hurricane Ike slams Texas coast (September 13, 2008)As of 1:00 p.m. CDT on September 13, 2008, Ike had downgraded to a tropical storm. National Weather Service: Tropical Storm Ike Intermediate Advisory (September 13, 2008)
Background
On September 6, Ike struck the islands of Turks and Caicos, causing damage to more than 80 percent of homes there.ABC News: Hurricane Looms as Trouble for Gulf(September 7, 2008) FOXNews.com: Hurricane Ike Strengthens to Category 4 On the night of September 7th, Ike struck Cuba, forcing over a million people to evacuate their homes over the next two days.MSNBC: Havana feels Ike as it makes second landfall (September 9, 2008)
On September 12, Ike was a category 2 hurricane and was heading west-northwest towards Texas at 13 mph. Ike is expected to make landfall near the Galveston and Houston area as a Category 3 or even Category 4 hurricane on either Friday, September 12 or early Saturday, September 13.National Hurricane Center: Hurricane Ike Public Advisory
