It was only a category 2 storm, based on wind speed, but the surge was larger than anyone expected and arrived much sooner than many planned.
Waves of up to 14-feet high swept across Bolivar Peninsula. Most of Galveston Island was flooded and some longstanding landmarks were either damaged or destroyed.
Ike was the last storm to directly affect the Houston-Galveston area. It might be another four years, four months or even four weeks before the next one.
This is the Calm Between the Storms. To see our Eyewitness News hurricane special, click on the video windows above. And, of course, stay with ABC13 Eyewitness News for the very latest on conditions in the tropics throughout hurricane season.