The eye of hurricane Ike has powered onto land in Galveston, Texas, and the storm is punishing the shoreline with 110 mph (177 kph) winds. The National Hurricane Center says the eye landed at 3:10 a.m. EDT (0710GMT) in the coastal community southeast of Houston. Storm gusts are bending trees along the coast, waist-deep water overruns roadways and rattling windows keep uneasy residents awake. The storm has cut power to hundreds of thousands. Two million people are hunkered down in their homes around Houston, the nation's fourth-largest city, the Associated Press reported. Another 1 million people evacuated coastal communities in the days leading up to the storm. But officials still fear a massive rescue operation will be required for those who stayed.
