Hurricane Ike One Year Later: Progress, Partnership, Preparedness

Hurricane Ike smashed into the upper Texas Gulf Coast over Galveston Island and the Bolivar Peninsula at 2:10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2008. Although officially a Category 2 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph, Ike's storm surge was that of a Category 4 hurricane, its wall of water reaching 17 to 20 feet in some areas. Lives were lost, and neighborhoods and communities were shattered.

FEMA and its state and local partners mobilized well ahead of the storm in a massive effort to limit Ike's devastating effects on people and property. One year later, the partnership remains strong -- and communities are rebounding from the disaster.

Over the past year more federal dollars have been provided to the state of Texas to assist with recovery from Hurricane Ike than for any other disaster in state history.

Meanwhile, with National Preparedness Month under way and Texas at the height of another hurricane season, FEMA and the Texas Division of Emergency Management, partners in the Ike recovery effort, are urging citizens to prepare now for any emergency.

Click the buttons at right to access preparedness resources and the latest information concerning the united recovery effort one year after Ike.