Hurricane Beryl made Texas landfall around 4 am this morning. In the wake of 75 – 90 mph winds, heavy rain, and flooding, the Category 1 hurricane has caused sweeping power outages in the Houston area with a reported 1.7 million Houston residents without power.
After making landfall in Matagorda Bay along the Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Beryl has quickly caused widespread power outages through Houston counties as it moves north eastward. As of 10 am Monday morning, 1,954,574 Houston residents and businesses are without power according to CenterPoint Energy, with 120,526 Entergy customers without power; those numbers continue to climb.
In wake of the Category 1 Storm, a Tornado Watch and Flash Flood, and Flood Warning are presently in effect in Houston counties, including: Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Hardin, Harris, Jefferson, Liberty, Matagorda, and Montgomery until 9/10 am Monday morning.
Houston-area counties have already received up to 6 inches of rainfall, with chances of an additional 2-4 inches.
“The most intense rainfall, ranging from 8 to 12 inches in most areas, will occur near the storm’s landfall location along the east-central Texas coast, extending up to Houston and Tyler,” said AccuWeather meteorologist Tyler Roys.
Houston areas are now experiencing hurricane-like winds between 45 and 80 miles per hour. Additional wind damage, flooding, and torrential rain is expected to occur throughout the day. Power outages are also expected to climb.
Meteorologists have noted the clip by which Hurricane Beryl is moving through Texas. They’ve concurred that the storm is deteriorating rapidly, with the worst expected to pass the Houston area by Monday night – no specific time has been predicted. That said, residents are advised to take shelter and stay off the roads with the flood and tornado warnings in effect.
Stay tuned for more details.