Flood Plains by Mark Wheaton

Author:Mark Wheaton
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9781469962689
Publisher: CreateSpace
Published: 2012-02-01T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

The National Hurricane Center was the first institution to become significantly worried about Galveston.

“We’re getting readings back from our hardened equipment just fine, but there’s nothing from our monitoring staff on-site,” went a report to the Coast Guard.

“We’re not getting anything, either,” replied the Coast Guard. “We’re considering a landing.”

Despite the heavy cloud cover, infrared satellite photos revealed that flooding associated with Eliza was significant, with much of Houston and its outlying areas underwater. Emergency services that had been mobilized in Travis County outside the storm’s path were readied for deployment as soon as the governor authorized their release. The problem was, the storm was proving to be a peculiar bird.

It had washed across Galveston and crept over Houston, slowing as it reached the city. All of this was easily anticipated hurricane behavior. Only, once it was over the most populated areas, it came to a complete standstill, which hurricanes sometimes did as well, only this one wasn’t losing wind speed in the process. It wasn’t dissipating. What threw the meteorologists was that a hurricane drew its energy from the warm waters it passed over on the ocean. Dry land was a storm-killer. The only way it could exhibit this kind of behavior was if it had found a new energy source.

Despite the conflicting theories about what this energy source could be, everyone agreed that it was unlike any storm system they’d previously encountered.

The Coast Guard dispatched the lone Hamilton-class cutter in the area, the Van Ness, from its storm port of Baton Rouge to Galveston. Upon arrival, it immediately reported that the Galveston Island Causeway had been destroyed by the hurricane, which surprised many. The bridge arced a hundred feet over the water and was specifically designed to withstand winds even greater than what Eliza brought. The consensus was that the collapse wasn’t caused by wind or rain but by the collapse of one or more pylons. It was assumed they must have been taking a beating from any number of heavy or sunken objects dredged up in the Intercoastal Waterway by the storm.

It was now being decided if sailors from the Van Ness could attempt a landing on Galveston Island itself. The ruined piers and likelihood of newly treacherous submersibles sunk just below the surface meant docking the cutter was out. However, a lieutenant had outlined a plan involving the ship’s Zodiacs that could ferry sailors directly onto the beaches.

The ship’s captain weighed this idea but felt the boats were too exposed and an attempt too dangerous under current sea conditions. When this changed, they would reassess.

The lieutenant protested but was told in no uncertain terms that the ship had sighted no immediate signs of emergency or distress coming from the island, so why risk men? They could be interfering unnecessarily with the work of the local civic government.

The fact that they hadn’t seen any signs of life at all didn’t set off any alarm bells.

• • •

Alan’s pain was excruciating, far worse than anything he’d felt before.

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