Ike Coverage: Houston, we have a problem?

Ike continues to barrel towards the Texas shore, with an estimated impact sometime early Saturday morning. Models are now projecting Ike will spare Galveston, hitting just south of the city, but will then turn north towards Houston.

Florida and Louisiana have gotten most of the attention when it comes to hurricanes lately, but LiveScience points out that Houston and coastal Texas have been leading targets for major storms.

Texas ranks second only to Florida in number of direct hits from hurricanes. Between 1900 and 2004, Florida was hit by a total of 64 hurricanes, Texas absorbed 38, and North Carolina took the brunt of 29.

In addition to Hurricane Dolly earlier this year, here are some of the major storms to hit Texas:

* The Great Galveston Storm of 1900: Still the deadliest storm in U.S. history, the unnamed category 4 hurricane swept away half the homes in Galveston and claimed the lives of 8,000 to 12,000 people.

* In 2001, Tropical Storm Allison dumped nearly 37 inches of rain on the Port of Houston over a five-day period, killing 22 people. The costliest disaster in Houston's history to date.

* Hurricane Alicia in 1983 killed 21 Texans.

* In 1961, massive Hurricane Carla whipped up peak winds of 175 mph. LiveScience notes that "Only 46 Texas residents died, largely because about 250,000 people had evacuated."

Outside of the Houston area, Hurricane Rita devastated many coastal communities near the Texas/Louisiana border. Following in Katrina's foot-steps, Rita doesn't get as much attention, but it was the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded.