The Galveston Hurricane of 1900 was the worst disaster, at least in terms of the cost to human life, that the United States has ever endured. As such, it is an important case study on how to prevent and handle such matters in the future. As around 12,000 people lost their lives in a manner which, had experts at the time seen what needed to be done to make Galveston a safer place, it is important that we examine what could, and should, have been done prior to the incident to make Galveston a safer place.
As explained in the documentary, Galveston was a low-lying island off the coast of Texas with few natural defences. To make matters worse, sand was purposely taken away from the beaches in order to be used on other parts of the island and even it out. This took away what little natural protection the residents had. On top of that, while many called for a seawall to offer protection from storm surges, meteorologist and pioneer in his field Issac Cline publically stated that no seawall was necessary, and declared that it was impossible for a hurricane to hit Galveston. He of course paid the ultimate price for this as a resident in 1900, when he lost his wife and unborn child to the storm. Miraculously, he and his three other children survived the storm, and he went on to make a great career in his field. But his shortsightedness cost the lives of 12,000 people, as Galveston had been considering building a seawall beforehand but did not feel the need to actually do so based upon his expert opinion.
What we in the field of homeland security need to take away from this disaster is that it is not always advisable to take experts solely upon their word. A cursory understanding of hurricanes in the Gulf and a glance at the map would be enough for most people to recognize the vulnerable position Galveston Island is in, and always has been in. The fact that a seawall was built after the 1900 hurricane and proved beneficial in 1915 against a similar hurricane should be enough to recognize that something went horribly awry in the 1890’s, when Cline publically stated there was no need for a seawall. We must seek to prevent similar disasters from occurring by not only listening to, but also questioning, expert opinion.
References:
Larsson, Eric (2000). Issac’s Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in
History. New York: Vintage Books.
Weems, John Edward. “Galveston Hurricane of 1900.” Texas State Historical Association.
Retrieved from http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/ydg02 on 2/19/2013.
Ramos, Mary. “Galveston’s Response to the Hurricane of 1900.” Texas Historical
Association Texas Almanac. Retrieved from
http://www.texasalmanac.com/topics/history/galvestons-response-hurricane-1900 on 2/19/2013.
