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My next Galveston visit is likely to be via the ferry from Bolivar Peninsula to Galveston Island. According to other postings, one rationale for using ferries instead of building a bridge connecting Bolivar Peninsula to Galveston island is to avoid the possibility of bridge collapsing and blocking the Houston, Texas City, and Galveston ship channels for a protracted period of time. Whenever tropical storm conditions are predicted, the ferries can be moved to relatively safe docking areas until the storm passes.

When I was a kid growing up in southern Louisiana, my parents usually took the Lutcher-Vacherie (aka M. V. St. James) ferry across the Mississippi River whenever we visited relatives in Thibodaux and other destinations in southeast Louisiana. Once underway, my parents allowed me to watch the machinery in operation through viewing ports in the passage ways adjacent to the diesel engines and ancillary machinery. The Mississippi River is approximately one mile wide, but the strong (approximately 3 mph) current required the ferry to head somewhat north relative to the opposite side to counter the effects of the current and end up at the intended destination on the opposite side.    

According to recent information regarding the effects of recent, heavy rains on and adjacent to Galveston Island, [1] the normal salinity of Galveston Bay has been reduced, creating ideal conditions for increasing the presence of vibrio, a flesh eating bacteria. [2] Vibrio can directly enter the body of those swimming or wading via unhealed cuts or sores, or indirectly by the consumption of uncooked (raw) seafood containing vibrio.

Once ingested, vibrio can cause severe nausea and other health discomforts. Raw oysters are one of the more common uncooked seafood options served by restaurants.        

According to The Daily News, the management group for several, well known Galveston restaurants is joining the lawsuits already being filed by various Houston businesses against Houston-based Center Point Energy. The likely basis for the plaintiffs' lawsuits is their claim the respondent, Center Point Energy, was negligent in that it did not carry out adequate preventive maintenance of its electric power distribution system over a significant period time prior to Hurricane Beryl making landfall in Galveston and Harris counties.

In an earlier posting I described what I might do in the event of being unable to evacuate during a hurricane making landfall on Galveston Island. In particular, I mentioned staying in my motel room and not opening the door for anyone except for law enforcement officers until the storm abated.

What I did not consider was the electric power would likely be off for several days. Without air conditioning, lights, etc., the room would soon become a very hot, humid, dark, and boring environment. In addition to the physical discomfort, the boredom would be hard to endure.

The July landfall of Hurricane Beryl on Galveston Island reminded me that my first Galveston vacation visit was for 9 or 10 days in July. My then girlfriend and I stayed at The Islander motel which was within easy walking distance to Stewart Beach, Mario's Flying Pizza, and at least one convenience store.

The Islander Motel's construction was similar to that of some present-day Holiday Inn Express motels, with parking on ground level and the guest rooms supported on reinforced concrete columns above the parking area. 

What eventually became an office and storage building for UTMB, was then an enclosed shopping center (Port Holiday Mall) about a mile inland from Stewart Beach.