The United States was hit by extreme weather on Wednesday, with Texas bracing for the first tropical storm of the hurricane season, while the Northeast was still dealing with a major heat wave.
Tropical Storm Alberto formed in the western Gulf of Mexico, the National Hurricane Center announced Wednesday around 10 a.m. local time. The storm is expected to bring heavy rain, coastal flooding and gusty winds along the Texas coast and northeastern Mexico through Thursday, officials said.
Tropical storm warnings are in effect along the Texas coast from San Luis Pass to the mouth of the Rio Grande, with strong winds and up to 10 to 15 inches of rain expected in Corpus Christi. The state government enacted a large-scale emergency response in anticipation of widespread flooding.
The National Weather Center office in Houston said at 4:30 a.m. local time that there were already reports of coastal flooding as the rain moved inland.
“The disturbance is very large, with rainfall, coastal flooding and wind impacts likely occurring far from the center, along the coast of Texas and northeastern Mexico,” the National Hurricane Center said in an update.
O hurricane center also said By Wednesday morning, life-threatening landslides were likely to occur in higher elevations in northern Mexico, including around the cities of Monterrey and Ciudad Victoria.
On Tuesday night, Texas Governor Greg Abbott ordered the state Division of Emergency Management to place the Texas State Emergency Operations Center on Level 2 Readiness, meaning it began 24-hour operations. day.
“As we prepare for severe tropical weather, Texas is activating all necessary personnel and resources to support Texans and communities that will potentially be impacted by excessive rainfall and flooding,” he said in a statement.
The Texas A&M Forest Service has mobilized four teams consisting of 100 people and 24 vehicles, while the Texas National Guard has three platoons of more than 40 people in total, alongside 20 vehicles, including Chinook helicopters.
The weather service told people in affected areas to have five to seven days’ supplies of food, water and other necessities.
The storm warning came as 71 million people were under some type of heat watch or advisory on Wednesday, as a severe heat wave is expected to last through Friday.
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