Kemah Boardwalk, Hurricane Ike and Tammy

My friend Tammy lives in Kemah, Texas, a nice little coastal town with a great boardwalk. The boardwalk is located on Galveston Bay. Many of you folks that read this blog know Tammy.

Kemah was hit hard by Hurricane Ike.

Below is the boardwalk area before Ike.

This next one is the marina.

At the top of the marina is the boardwalk.

I believe the big building is a parking garage.

The pictures below were taken in May, 2007 during one of my visits. It was cold and overcast that day. The closed umbrellas are outdoor seating at a restaurant. The name of it escapes me but I remember the food was delicious!

The cute train that runs around part of the boardwalk.

I wonder what happened to the train above and the engine below.

They're probably goners.

Here we are ~ Tammy on the right and me

The entire crew (left - right) me, Bart, Tammy and Jesse. Jesse is Tammy's son, and a great guy! And, as for Bart, man can he cook! YUM. Nice guy too.
I talked to Tammy on Friday and she told me they decided to stay put through the hurricane. They armed themselves with two generators, coolers, food, water, and other disaster-necessary items. They felt they were high enough and far enough away that they'd be safe. She lives probably 3 miles from the boardwalk so I was very concerned! She promised to shoot me an email or stay in touch somehow to let me know she was doing okay.

10:53 pm, Friday night ~ email from Tammy

"We are getting wind gusts from 60-90 mph and rain, but at this time, we don't have standing water. Good thing it hasn't rained lately."
I didn't see this email until later the next day because I am having issues with some of my emails not being visible but that's another story. In any event, if I would have seen it, I would have emailed back immediately, especially since she still had power! After this time, Tammy's sister Vicki was emailing me to keep me abreast of the situation.

12:38 (just after midnight) ~ email from Vicki

"I just talked to Tammy. Her phone isn't working for some reason, so she is using Bart's phone now. He is taking a nap at this time and she is reading a book. They are getting rain, and wind and lots of transformers are blowing out. They do have some tree limbs down but no damage. All are ok."

2:12 pm Saturday afternoon ~ email from Vicki

"Tammy and Bart are without electricity and water. They have the generator going for the refrigerator and freezer and are high and dry. They lost a couple of trees, missed the house, one broken window and a little bit of the door to the wellhouse and a small part of the greenhouse that attaches to the house. She has even rescued a red headed woodpecker from the dogs mouth and is letting it recoup in the back of the pickup. They washed clothes, dishes and cleaned the house yesterday in case of the loss of water and elec., even showered. So, they're ok. When she calls again, I will let you know. Jesse is also ok in Austin."

12:02 pm Sunday afternoon ~ email from Vicki

"Tammy just sent me a text to land line message. What I could understand of it said they are all right. I had tried to call them earlier and got no answer, so this may be the only way for them to reply right now. Will pass on anymore messages."

7:24 pm Sunday ~ email from Vicki

"Tammy called and they are good. Plenty of gas for the generators and plenty of water and food. They are going outside and picking up limbs, etc. and then resting because they get hot and only have a fan to cool off with so they have to be careful. The animals are fine too. They still have one bag of ice and when they unplug the freezer for a while and plug in the refrigerator they fill the icemaker and then bag it and put it in the freezer. They grilled bratwurst Saturday night for supper and used the propane to cook the other food, then ate it for sandwiches today. She said they were both a little dehydrated last night and they are trying to stay hydrated, but it's hard with the heat and humidity. She asked me to call Jesse and tell him to stay in Austin for safety sake and because he would use food and water that they may need later. He laughed at that when I told him. They also have their meds, especially Tammy. Bart's parents went to Kileen to stay with another son. They live in the northwest part of Houston in a double wide and knew it wouldn't be safe to stay in. I don't know if they have come back. The ditches in front of their home have all drained. Will let you know more as I hear it."
Needless to say (but I will) that I'm really happy that Tammy, Bart, the dogs, and all their things are doing okay!
That's the last I have heard but I expect to hear something again soon. Here is a link to a video from a Houston TV station flying over the Kemah Boardwalk. I think it was the day after Ike. The devastation is heartbreaking but many times good comes out of bad. Hopefully, they'll fix 'er up bigger and better!

Also, they house they live in is a rent house. It's a really cool house with a beautiful and huge (maybe one acre) yard. They are in the process of buying a house in Crosby, Texas (north of Houston) and if all goes well, they'll be moving the beginning of October. I will miss their house and yard! I LOVE it.