I got word yesterday from a good friend that the Lone Star Flight Museum in Galveston, Texas was devastated by Hurricane Ike. Any description I give will not do the reality of the damage justice.
Before Ike arrived, the museum was able to move its B-17, B-25, DC-3,P-47, F6F, F4U, SBD, PT-17, T-6 and F8F out of harms way. The LSFM website says that it will be adding a special donations page to help with the rebuilding “within the next 24 hours.” Once it is available, I will add the link to this page as well.
From Museum President Larry Gregory:
September 16, 2008 6:30 p.m. – Galveston, Texas
A
first site survey found damage from Ike as substantial. The hangars and
Texas Aviation Hall of Fame had 7-8 feet of water in those areas. The
gift shop and lobby area had 3-4 feet of water. The southwest side of
both hangars appear compromised. The entire contents of the gift ship
are lost. Every exhibit in the Texas Aviation Hall of Fame was
destroyed although some artifacts may be able to be saved.. How many is
yet to be determined.The
airplanes received major water damage. Most remain in good shape
physically. All plumbing and electrical systems are inoperable. The
roof is okay minus one skylight. The second floor appears to be
untouched. All evacuated aircraft are ok.
This post was originally published to the internet between 2007 and 2012. Links, images, and embedded media from that era may no longer function as intended.
This post originally appeared at Flightglobal.com from 2007 to 2012.