hurricane

Despite its vulnerable location on a low-lying island in the Gulf of Mexico, local weather forecaster Isaac Cline declared it was 'an absurd delusion' that the city of Galveston could be seriously damaged by a hurricane and local authorities refused to build a seawall defence. On Sept 8, 1900, when the city was full of residents, tourists and storm-watchers, a hurricane destroyed the city, killing an estimated 10,000 people. It was the worst natural disaster in US history and though the cotton port was rebuilt, it never recovered its importance.