FEMA Director Says Texans Need To Be Ready

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Get ready to get out -- it's the message from the federal government today to people in south Texas.<br/><br/>The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency says if he lived

Sunday, August 19th 2007, 2:59 pm

By: News On 6

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Get ready to get out -- it's the message from the federal government today to people in south Texas.

The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency says if he lived along the southeastern Texas coast, he'd make sure he was ready to evacuate.

Hurricane Dean is heading toward the Gulf of Mexico, where forecasters believe it could become a powerful Category 5 storm.

FEMA chief David Paulison says it's "not a time to be complacent."

He says if the storm shifts course and strikes the region around Brownsville, Texas, it'll reach an area in which many people don't have their own transportation.

He says 1,300 buses are in place in San Antonio to help with a possible evacuation, along with more than 130 fixed-wing aircraft and hundreds of helicopters.

Paulison took over the agency last year after his predecessor was criticized for the government's slow response to Hurricane Katrina.