HOUSTON -- Southeast Texas residents are keeping a close eye on Hurricane Ike and getting ready just in case he heads this way, KPRC Local 2 reported Monday.

"Tomorrow we have a man coming to board us up," Galveston resident Ann Cahier said.

She said she and her husband watch the surf every day and can feel a storm brewing.

"You can tell the water's churning," she said.

They said they will not be caught off-guard.

Their home was still standing in a field of debris after the hurricane of 1900.

At least 6,000 people were killed in that hurricane, which hit on Sept. 8. The island had to be rebuilt.

"We have used that catastrophic event for our planning," Galveston Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas said Monday. "First of all, they didn't have the communication and, second of all, they didn't have the seawall."

Ike's path is not certain, but the Galveston County Emergency Operations Center will open at 8 a.m. Tuesday.

Harris County officials are preparing for the possibility of Ike coming inland.

"We've been on the phone doing conference calls," said Francisco Sanchez with the Harris County Office of Emergency Management. "Folks don't want another hurricane, but we're going to have to deal with another one."

Workers are on stand-by until Ike's path is clearer.

In Brazoria County, officials said they will begin evacuations for people with special needs on Wednesday morning if the storm appears to be on track for southeast Texas.