Lyda Ann Thomas

Infobox Officeholder
name = Lyda Ann Thomas


caption =
order = Mayor of Galveston, Texas
term_start = 2004
term_end =
predecessor = Roger "Bo" Quiroga
successor = incumbent
birth_date =
birth_place = Galveston
death_date =
death_place =
constituency =
party = Democratic
spouse =
alma_mater =
profession = President of Thomas & Company of Galveston, Inc
religion =


footnotes =

Lyda Ann Thomas is the mayor of Galveston. She was first elected in 2004 to succeed Roger "Bo" Quiroga. Thomas is the third female mayor of Galveston. cite news |first=Kate |last=Torgovnick|title=The Cities Where Women Rule |url=http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1832490,00.html|work=Time Magazine |publisher=|date=2008-08-13 |accessdate=2008-09-13]

Early life

Thomas ran for District 4 for the Galveston City Council in 1998. She won both permitted elections after that until term-limited out. In 2004 she ran for, and was elected, Mayor of Galveston.

Hurricane Rita

In September 20, 2005 during Hurricane Rita, Thomas declared a state of emergency and ordered an evacuation effective 6 PM the following day. When added to the panicked flight from Houston, this exacerbated the congestion in the area. She was however praised for her caution, receiving the 2007 National Blueprint Best Practices Award from the National Council on Readiness & Preparedness.

Hurricane Ike

In August 4, 2008 when Tropical Storm Edouard came ashore, Thomas limited her statements to a warning.

When Hurricane Ike approached Galveston, on September 10 at noon Thomas said that although she did not expect to be ordering an evacuation, she asked for a voluntary evacuation of the western part of the island. At 5 PM this hardened to a mandatory order and she suggested voluntary evacuation for the rest of the island.

Thomas ordered the full evacuation 9:30 AM on September 11, in a news conference with Galveston County Judge Jim Yarbrough. She told the media at the time that she had wanted to avoid an evacuation order.

References

External links

* [http://www.cityofgalveston.org/city_council/thomas.cfm The City Council of Galveston, Texas]
* [http://usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-09-25-evacuation-cover_x.htm Evacuation worked, but created a highway horror] O'Driscoll, Patrick; Richard Wolf and Rick Hampson (9/26/2005 7:47 PM). USA Today
* [http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/20/rita/index.html With Rita strengthening, Galveston orders evacuation]
* [http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/5922977.html Gulf Coast residents watch surprise tropical storm]
* [http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/5996000.html Ike's changing course delayed Galveston's evacuation call, city says]