Beryl makes landfall in Texas as a Category 1 hurricane

Beryl made landfall on the Texas coast near Matagorda early Monday with a dangerous storm surge and strong winds knocking out power to more than half a million homes and businessesThe storms centre hit land as a Category 1 hurricane around 4 am Central Standard Time about 85 miles southwest of Houston with top sustained winds of 80 mph 1287 kph while moving north at 12 mph 193 kph the National Weather Service reportedHigh waters quickly began closing roads around Houston which was again under flood warnings after heavy storms in recent months washed out neighbourhoods and knocked out power across the nations fourthlargest cityMore than 750000 customers were without power many of them around Houston before daybreak Monday according to CenterPoint Energy in Houston More than 1000 flights have been canceled at Houstons two airports according to tracking data from FlightAware Beryl dumped soaking rains across Houston after coming ashore and was expected to bring damaging winds into East Texas near Louisiana as the storm pushed north after making landfallldquoBeryls moving inland but this is not the end of the story yetrdquo said Jack Beven senior hurricane specialist at the National Hurricane CenterBeryl strengthened and became a hurricane again late Sunday The storm had weakened after leaving a path of deadly destruction through parts of Mexico and the CaribbeanA hurricane warning remains in effect for the Texas coast from Mesquite Bay north to Port Bolivar the center saidBeryl is expected to weaken to a tropical storm Monday and a tropical depression Tuesday the weather service said forecasting a turn to the northeast and increase in speed Monday night and TuesdayThe storms center is expected to move over eastern Texas on Monday and then through the lower Mississippi Valley into the Ohio Valley on Tuesday and Wednesday the weather service saidPeople on the Texas coast boarded up windows and left beach towns under an evacuation order As the storm neared the coast Sunday Texas officials warned of power outages and flooding but also expressed worry that not enough residents and beach vacationers in Beryls path had heeded warnings to leaveldquoOne of the things that kind of trigger our concern a little bit weve looked at all of the roads leaving the coast and the maps are still greenrdquo said Texas Lt Gov Dan Patrick who is serving as the states acting governor while Gov Greg Abbott is travelling overseas ldquoSo we dont see many people leavingrdquo Tropical storm 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 middle upper and eastern Texas as well as Arkansas as the storm gradually turns to the north and then northeast later MondayAlong the Texas coast many residents and business owners took the typical storm precautions but also expressed uncertainty about the storms intensityIn Port Lavaca Jimmy May fastened plywood over the windows of his electrical supply company and said he wasnt concerned about the possible storm surge He recalled his business had escaped flooding in a previous hurricane that brought a 20foot 6meter storm surgeldquoIn town you know if youre in the lowlying areas obviously you need to get out of thererdquo he saidAt the nearby marina Percy Roberts showed his neighbor Ken Waller how to properly secure his boat as heavy winds rolled in from the bay Sunday eveningldquoThis is actually going to be the first hurricane Im going to be experiencingrdquo Waller said noting he is a little nervous but feels safe following Roberts lead ldquoPray for the best but expect the worst I guessrdquo The earliest storm to develop into a 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 ripped off doors windows and roofs with devastating winds and storm surge fueled by the Atlantics record warmthThree times during its one week of life Beryl has gained 35 mph 56 kph in wind speed in 24 hours or less the official weather service definition of rapid intensificationBeryls explosive growth into an unprecedented early whopper of a 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 saidTexas officials warned people along the entire coastline to prepare for possible flooding heavy rain and wind The hurricane warning extended from Baffin Bay south of Corpus Christi to Sargent south of HoustonBeryl lurked as another potential heavy rain event for Houston where storms in recent months have knocked out power across the nations fourthlargest city and flooded neighborhoods A flash flood watch was in effect for a wide swath of the Texas coast where forecasters expected Beryl to dump as much as 10 inches 25 centimeters of rain in some areasPotential storm surges between 4 and 7 feet 122 and 213 meters above ground level were forecast around Matagorda The warnings extended to the same coastal areas where Hurricane Harvey came ashore in 2017 as a Category 4 hurricane far more powerful than Beryls expected intensity by the time the storm reaches landfallThose looking to catch a flight out of the area found a closing window for air travel as Beryl moved closer Hundreds of flights from Houstons two major commercial airports were delayed by midafternoon Sunday and dozens more canceled according to FlightAware dataIn Corpus Christi officials asked visitors to cut their trips short and return home early if possible Residents were advised to secure homes by boarding up windows if necessary and using sandbags to guard against possible floodingThe White House said Sunday that the Federal Emergency Management Agency had sent emergency responders searchandrescue teams bottled water and other resources along the coastSeveral coastal counties called for voluntary evacuations in lowlying areas that are prone to flooding Local officials also banned beach camping and urged tourists traveling on the Fourth of July holiday weekend to move recreational vehicles from coastal parksBeryl battered Mexico as a Category 2 hurricane last week toppling trees but causing no injuries or deaths before weakening to a tropical storm as it moved across the Yucatan PeninsulaBefore hitting Mexico Beryl wrought destruction in Jamaica Barbados and St Vincent and the Grenadines Three people were reported dead in Grenada three in St Vincent and the Grenadines three in Venezuela and two in Jamaica AP GSPThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever