The Houston area can expect heavy rain, flooding in some locations and tropical storm force winds over the next 24 hours as Hurricane Beryl moves toward the Texas coast.
City leaders urged residents to stay off the streets Sunday from 10 p.m.
“The fewer people on the road, the easier it is for us to do our job,” Acting Police Chief Larry Satterwhite said during a press conference Sunday. “The less likely we are to have to perform rescues.”
“If you have to go out on the road in a vehicle and drive it, and if you see water on the road, don’t drive that way thinking you’re going to drive through it.”
Connected: Houston Public Media Hurricane and Tropical Storm Tracker
Houston Mayor John Whitmire said county leaders and surrounding city leaders are preparing for Hurricane Beryl to move north after reaching the Texas coast, bringing six to 12 inches of rain to the region.
“I want to let Houstonians know that the conditions you go to bed under tonight are not going to be the same as the conditions you’ll find when you wake up in the morning,” Whitmire said.
Beryl is expected to enter the Houston area from the southwest, with counties like Fort Bend expected to feel the most impact from the storm.
According to updated tracking, the storm is expected to make landfall near Matagorda Bay on Monday morning.
According to Eric Berger of Space City Weather, if conditions hold, the Houston area “will see the strongest winds and heaviest rainfall from Beryl.”
Beryl was still a tropical storm as of Sunday afternoon, but it is expected to reach the peak as a Category 1 hurricane on Monday.
The outer regions of the storm were moving inland even before landfall, and parts of the Houston area were receiving intermittent rain Sunday morning.
“We’re seeing the outer bands of Beryl now moving toward the Texas coast and the weather should turn choppy, especially this afternoon and evening,” Eric Blake, senior hurricane specialist at the National Hurricane Center, said Sunday morning. “People should definitely move to their safe locations by nightfall and we’re expecting the storm to make landfall somewhere along the central Texas coast overnight.”
AP Photo/Eric Gay
Meteorologists predict up to 8 inches of rain in parts of the Houston area during the storm. More rain is expected further south, with Galveston expected to see up to 10 inches.
Heavy rain is expected overnight and into Monday morning.
Bradley Brokamp, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Houston-Galveston office, said residents should avoid driving unnecessarily.
“Over the next several hours into tomorrow, we’re going to see conditions get worse as Beryl moves toward our area,” Brokamp said. “Especially since it’s Monday, people should be very cautious if they’re planning on going to work because that also coincides with landfall timing.”
Connected: LIST: Houston area schools and offices closed due to Beryl
Tropical storm force winds could be a problem for the Galveston and Houston area, resulting in downed trees and power outages. Winds of 35-55 mph are expected in central Houston during the storm.
Officials are warning of storm surges of three to five feet in Galveston. Galveston County issued a pre-disaster declaration Saturday.
Hurricane warnings have been issued for parts of Baffin Bay to San Luis Pass, Jackson County, Matagorda County and Brazoria County. A hurricane watch remains in effect for Galveston Island.
As of Sunday afternoon, most flights from Bush Intercontinental and Hobby were departing on time, but more than 65 flights were delayed and four others were canceled, according to data from FlightAware.
Fort Bend leaders prepare for Beryl
Fort Bend County activated its emergency operations center ahead of Beryl.
“We are expecting a category one hurricane, but we are preparing for a category two,” County Judge KP George said during a Sunday afternoon press conference.
Officials are urging people to be prepared and stay out on the roads during the storm. They have also warned of tornadoes that may accompany the storm.
The county was threatened with minor flooding from the Brazos River in May. But officials say water levels have receded.
“We have a lot of capacity available in the Brazos River,” said Jeff Janecek, first assistant engineer for the Fort Bend County Drainage District.
Statewide impact expected
The White House said Sunday that the Federal Emergency Management Agency had sent emergency response teams, search and rescue teams, bottled water and other resources to the coast.
Some coastal towns called for voluntary evacuations in low-lying areas prone to flooding, banned beach camping and urged tourists traveling over the Fourth of July holiday weekend to remove recreational vehicles from coastal parks. In Refugio County, north of Corpus Christi, officials issued a mandatory evacuation order for its 6,700 residents.
Connected: Houston area braces for heavy rain as Beryl moves toward Texas coast
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who is acting governor during Gov. Greg Abbott’s visit to Taiwan, has issued a pre-crisis disaster declaration for 121 counties.
Beryl lashed Mexico earlier this week as a Category 2 hurricane, knocking down trees but causing no reports of injuries or deaths, and it then weakened to a tropical storm as it headed for the Yucatan Peninsula.
According to Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach, Beryl will be the 10th hurricane to hit Texas in July since 1851 and the fourth in the past 25 years.
Dominic Anthony Walsh, Natalie Weber, Sarah Grunau and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
