Texans prepare for worst from new hurricane

HOUSTON — Even with powerful Hurricane Dean days away and its path uncertain, officials in sodden south Texas left little to chance Sunday, readying planes, gasoline and hundreds of buses to get residents out in a hurry.

Authorities passed out sandbags, evacuated inmates and opened emergency-operations centers in a region still soaked from the remnants of Tropical Storm Erin.

"We're preparing for Hurricane Dean just as if it is going to be a direct hit," said Johnny Cavazos, the chief emergency director for Cameron County, at the state's southernmost tip.

A state of emergency was declared in the resort town of South Padre Island.

In Washington, D.C., R. David Paulison, head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said up to 100,000 people might have to be evacuated from the state's southeastern coast. The storm is on course for northern Mexico but could shift and hit the region around Brownsville, Texas, Paulison said.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm would make landfall Wednesday.

The level of preparation for Dean was influenced by memories of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which hammered the Gulf Coast region in 2005.

During Rita, the evacuation quickly turned into a nightmare of clogged highways, stalled traffic and sweltering heat, as motorists from the coast ran into residents fleeing Houston. Gas stations ran out of fuel and supplies, and drivers sat for hours on gridlocked evacuation routes.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry mobilized the National Guard and search-and-rescue teams, shipped 60,000 to 80,000 barrels of gasoline to gas stations in the Rio Grande Valley, and got a pre-emptive federal disaster declaration from President Bush.

The state sent six C-130 aircraft to Cameron County in case critically ill patients need to be evacuated from hospitals. Buses were on standby for possible evacuations, including 700 sent by the governor's office. Another 600 buses were on standby in San Antonio.

"Being this prepared is expensive, and at times it's inconvenient, but I'd rather be safe than sorry," Cavazos said.