Just before 8 a.m. EDT, Ike was centered about 70 miles Southwest of Lufkin, Texas and moving north-northwest at 15 miles an hour. The NHC expects Ike to move north-northeast and speed up as it makes its way over land.
At 7 a.m. EDT winds had decreased to near 100 miles an hour, but the NHC says Ike remained category 2 storm. It is expected to weaken as it moves over land, but will remain a hurricane through this afternoon. The NHC says Ike remains a very large storm, with hurricane-force winds extending 125 miles from the eye.
The storm was expected to move away from the Houston metropolitan area. The NHC said isolated tornadoes are possible today over portions of eastern and southeastern Texas and southern and western Louisiana.