Feature: Texas Gulf Coast braces for next major hurricane

When Hurricane Ike hit Galveston, Texas, in September 2008, the epic storm uprooted families as it left a trail of destruction in its wake.

After the 130-mph winds subsided, the hurricane had caused 29.5 billion U.S. dollars in damages to Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida, and claimed at least 195 lives in the United States, Haiti and Cuba.

Nine years later, the stakes are even higher for the Texas Gulf Coast, home to roughly 30 percent of the proven oil reserves in the U.S. The plants and refineries that line Galveston Bay are home to much of the nation's petroleum refining, ethylene and chemical production, and jet fuel.

And it's that volatile chemical mix that has people worried with the approach of 2017 Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. A big concern, a hurricane expert said, is the potential for the "toxic gumbo" to spill into Texas waterways.

"The major concern of anyone should be the physical damage and potential loss of life to the public," said Danny Reible, professor of Chemical Engineering at Texas Tech University in Lubbock.

Another big concern is that "major storm events might cause exposure of contaminated sites or landfills with contaminated materials, or that a chemical facility might be damaged by a storm," said Reible, who also teaches Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering at Texas Tech U.

One especially toxic site - an abandoned paper mill and waste pits along the San Jacinto River near Houston - has prompted legal action from area residents. The lawsuit against International Paper, McGinnes Industrial and Waste Management alleges that residents became ill after eating toxic fish, and that their property values were damaged from the contamination.

In court filings, the corporate defendants argued that they inherited the pollution problem in the 1960s and blamed the government for failing to act more quickly to protect public health. State health workers have found dead fish in the river that flows into the Houston Ship Channel and empties into Galveston Bay.

"In general, when you look at Houston, there are a variety of potential storage points for hazardous materials that we deal with every day, including service stations, the automobiles themselves, and household chemicals you maintain at homes," Reible said. "All of these come into play in a major storm event."

John Jacob, director of the Texas Coastal Watershed Program, said he's concerned about the residential and business development in hurricane-prone areas.

"Mainly I am concerned that we continue to build where we shouldn't be building," he said. "We continue to put people in harm's way."

"I am very much concerned that we rely more and more on structural defenses that are likely subject to serious failure, and that we are not instead learning to face our vulnerabilities head on, learning to live with the land we have," Jacob said. "Hurricanes are a major hazard for us, no doubt about that."

Sherrill Hilton, who recently moved back to Galveston after working 13 years in the film and publishing industry in Los Angeles, California, said she will be prepared for the next major hurricane that hits.

"After living in Los Angeles and dealing with earthquakes, being prepared is very important for me and my family, to make the storm aftermath go as smoothly as possible," she said. "These Gulf Coast hurricanes are getting stronger and stronger, so I plan to evacuate when the next big one is heading our way." Enditem