Beryl hits Texas as a Category 1 hurricane, knocking out power to more than 1 million

MATAGORDA, Texas – Power outages are mounting along the Texas coast after Beryl made landfall on Monday and battered Houston with heavy rain and strong winds as the storm moved inland.

More than 1 million homes and businesses were without power hours after Beryl made landfall, according to CenterPoint Energy in Houston. Floodwaters quickly began closing streets in Houston and flood warnings were in effect across a wide swath of the Texas coast.

The National Weather Service expected Beryl to weaken to a tropical storm on Monday and a tropical depression on Tuesday, predicting a northeasterly turn and speed increase Monday night and Tuesday. The storm hit the US after leaving a trail of destruction last week in Mexico and the Caribbean.

The center of the storm made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane around 4 a.m. Central Standard Time, about 85 miles southwest of Houston, with sustained winds of 80 mph (128.7 km/h), as it moved toward north at 12 mph (19.3 kph), the National Weather Service reported.

High waters quickly began closing roads around Houston, which was again under a flood warning following heavy storms in recent months. washed neighborhoods and knocked out power to the country’s fourth largest city.

More than 1,000 flights were canceled at Houston’s two airports, according to tracking data from FlightAware.

Beryl dumped heavy rain on Houston after landfall and was expected to bring damaging winds to east Texas near Louisiana as the storm moved north after making landfall.

“Beryl is moving inland, but it’s not the end of the story,” said Jack Beven, senior hurricane specialist at the National Hurricane Center.

Beryl strengthened and became a hurricane again on Sunday night. The storm weakened after leaving a trail of deadly destruction across parts of the Mexico It is the Caribbean.

A hurricane warning remains in effect for the Texas coast from Mesquite Bay north to Port Bolivar, the center said.

The center of the storm is expected to move over east Texas on Monday and then through the lower Mississippi Valley into the Ohio Valley on Tuesday and Wednesday, the weather service said.

People on the Texas coast boarded up windows and left coastal towns under evacuation orders. As the storm approached the coast on Sunday, Texas officials warned of power outages and flooding, but also expressed concern that few residents and beach vacationers in Beryl’s path had heeded warnings to leave.

“One of the things that we’re most concerned about is that we looked at all the roads leading off the coast and the maps are still green,” said Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, who serves as the state’s governor. acting governor while Governor Greg Abbott is traveling abroad. “So we don’t see a lot of people coming out.”

The tropical storm’s winds extended 115 miles (185 kilometers) from the center and the hurricane center warned residents to be prepared for possible flash flooding in parts of central, upper and eastern Texas, as well as Arkansas, as that the storm gradually turns north and then northeast. later on Monday.

Along the Texas coast, many residents and business owners took typical storm precautions but also expressed uncertainty about the storm’s intensity.

In Port Lavaca, Jimmy May taped plywood to the windows of his power company and said he was not worried about the possible storm. He recalled that his business escaped flooding in a previous hurricane that brought a 20-foot storm surge.

“In the city, you know, if you’re in low-lying areas, obviously you need to get out of there,” he said.

At the nearby marina, Percy Roberts showed his neighbor Ken Waller how to properly secure his boat as strong winds blew in from the bay on Sunday night.

“This will actually be the first hurricane I’ve faced,” Waller said, noting he’s a little nervous but feels safe following Roberts’ example. “Pray for the best, but expect the worst, I guess.”

The first storm to turn into Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic, Beryl caused at least 11 deaths as it passed through the Caribbean on its way to Texas. The storm tore off doors, windows and roofs with devastating winds and storm surge fueled by the record heat of the Atlantic.

Three times during her week of life, Beryl gained 35 mph (56 km/h) in wind speed in 24 hours or less, the weather service’s official definition of rapid intensification.

Beryl’s explosive growth into an unprecedented storm indicates the Hot water of the Atlantic and Caribbean and what the Atlantic hurricane belt can expect for the rest of the storm season, experts said.

Texas authorities warned people along the entire coast to prepare for possible flooding, heavy rain and winds. The hurricane warning extended from Baffin Bay, south of Corpus Christi, to Sargent, south of Houston.

Beryl was another potential heavy rain event in Houston, where recent months’ storms overthrew the power in the fourth largest city in the country and flooded neighborhoods. A flash flood warning was in effect for a wide swath of the Texas coast, where forecasters expected Beryl to dump up to 10 inches of rain in some areas.

Potential storm surges between 1.22 and 2.13 meters (4 and 7 feet) above ground level were forecast around Matagorda. The alerts extended to the same coastal areas where Hurricane Harvey It made landfall in 2017 as a Category 4 hurricane, much more powerful than Beryl’s expected intensity at the time the storm made landfall.

Those looking to catch a flight out of the area found a closed window for air travel as Beryl approached. Hundreds of flights from Houston’s two main commercial airports were delayed mid-afternoon Sunday and dozens more were canceled, according to data from FlightAware.

In Corpus Christi, officials asked visitors to shorten trips and return home early if possible. Residents were advised to protect homes by boarding up windows if necessary and using sandbags to protect against possible flooding.

The White House said Sunday that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has sent emergency responders, search and rescue teams, bottled water and other resources along the coast.

Several coastal counties have called for voluntary evacuations in low-lying areas that are prone to flooding. Local officials also banned camping on the beach and urged tourists traveling over the Fourth of July holiday weekend to remove recreational vehicles from coastal parks.

Beryl hit Mexico as a Category 2 hurricane last week, knocking down trees but causing no injuries or deaths, before weakening to a tropical storm as it moved across the Yucatan Peninsula.

Before reaching Mexico, Beryl caused destruction in Jamaica, Barbados and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Three people were killed in Grenada, three in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, three in Venezuela and two in Jamaica.

___

Gonzalez reported from McAllen, Texas. Associated Press reporters Margery A. Beck in Omaha, Nebraska, Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City and Julie Walker in New York contributed.