GALVESTON — It didn’t matter that thousands of people all over the island were filling gas tanks, boarding windows, withdrawing cash and pointing their packed automobiles north on Interstate 45.
And it didn’t matter that island Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas earlier that morning had ordered a mandatory evacuation or that Gov. Rick Perry the same day urged coastal residents in Hurricane Ike’s way to leave.
Barber Coleman, who lives in the 3200 block of Ball Street, had never fled a hurricane and he wasn’t about to start, he said. Coleman, declined to give his age, but said he was old enough. The island native’s gray hair and weathered skin backed up his claim.
Coleman had spent the day helping to board up Market Street Baptist Church, where he’s a member. On Thursday, Coleman stood on his porch as islanders made storm preparations.
When asked why he wasn’t leaving, he pointed above: “Because he’ll take care of me,” he said. With that, Coleman walked into his house and shut the door.
Coleman wasn’t the only one who intended to ride out Ike.
Many of his neighbors and friends were staying too. In fact, all across the island, it wasn’t hard to find people who intended to face Ike. The reasons varied, but most agreed that bad memories of sitting on freeways for hours during Hurricane Rita weighed on their minds.
Katie Devine, 58, said she would stay with relatives on the mainland who offered her a place.
“I was on the road for 30 hours during Rita,” said Devine, who also was relying on a higher power to keep her safe. “I stayed here during Alicia and Carla and God protected me.”
In the late afternoon Thursday at the island’s Randalls Food Market, Theresa Black and daughter Gina Baginski, 21, were stocking up on supplies, including doughnuts and some gossip magazines to keep their minds occupied and off storm news.
Island resident James Williams, 32, also said he planned to stay.
Williams said he didn’t plan a hurricane party, like some island residents.
“We’re just going to make sure everyone is all right,” he said. “If we make it, then we’ll have a party.”
The two planned to stay put at their apartment in the Island Bay complex near Moody Gardens. They live on the second floor.
Still, Black said if things start looking worse, she’ll consider leaving in her Mercury Cougar.
“We’ve got a backup plan,” she said. “This thing goes 150 mph,” she said.
