Estimates rise as Texas tallies hurricane damage

The damage estimate for hurricane Alicia - originally set at between $700 million and $1 billion - continued to rise as officials tallied the effects of the storm, which hit southeast Texas last week. Following a helicopter survey of the affected areas Saturday, Sen. John Tower, (R) of Texas, said the estimate appeared low.

Coast Guard jets and helicopters searched the Gulf of Mexico Sunday for survivors of the hurricane. The death toll has risen to 16. Efforts to restore utility services continued, but Southwestern Bell had a shortage of workers because of the strike by the Communications Workers of America. On Galveston Island, which took the brunt of the storm, the electrical grid was still down because the main substation had been destroyed.