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(NEW YORK) — Tropical Storm Beryl is targeting the Gulf Coast of Texas after dealing a destructive blow to several islands in the Caribbean and the resort coast of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.
Beryl is projected to re-strengthen into a hurricane before it makes landfall just north of the U.S.-Mexico border late Sunday into Monday morning.
Beryl, the earliest Category 5 Atlantic hurricane in history, killed at least seven people in the Windward Islands — including Grenada and Carriacou — before skirting south of Jamaica, shutting down communications, stranding tourists and delivering storm surge and flooding rain to the island.
Here’s how the news is developing.
Jul 06, 5:09 PM
Beryl now less than 400 miles from Corpus Christi
Beryl, now less than 400 miles from Corpus Christi, remains a tropical storm with winds of 60 mph, moving at 13 mph.
Beryl is moving over water that is slightly warmer than normal, by 1 to 2 degrees.
As Beryl approaches the Texas coast it will move over much warmer waters, 4 and 5 degrees above normal. The warmer water is expected to help boost Beryl back into a hurricane before making landfall northeast of Corpus Christi on Monday morning.
Hurricane Warnings have been issued for parts of Texas, from Baffin Bay northward to Sargent. Tropical Storm Warnings are now issued north of Sargent to High Island.
Landfall may occur with the center of circulation most likely northeast of Corpus Christi — the greatest impacts remaining north of that city as well. There is still time for this track to change over the next 24 hours.
The last hurricane to make landfall in Texas was Nicholas in September 2021, which was a Category 1 and made landfall on the northern side of East Matagorda Bay.
The last hurricane to make landfall just north of Corpus Christi was Harvey in 2017 as a Category 4. Harvey then stalled and dumped historic rainfall over southeast Texas. Beryl is not expected to stall and therefore similar impacts as Harvey are not expected, in terms of rainfall, wind or storm surge.
A Hurricane Watch has been issued for the entire coast south of San Luis Pass due to the hurricane-strength, over 74 mph sustained wind expected along the Texas coast.
Jul 06, 12:33 PM
Hurricane watch in effect for parts of Texas
A Hurricane Watch is in effect in Texas from the Rio Grande Valley to San Luis Pass, just west of Galveston Island, with a Storm Surge Watch from the mouth of the Rio Grande northward to High Island, Texas.
Storm surge is forecast to be 3 to 5 feet in Corpus Christi and Matagorda Bay, and 2 to 4 feet in Galveston Bay. These numbers are subject to change depending on the exact track and intensity of the storm as it approaches landfall.
Residents along the Texas coast need to be prepared for a powerful hurricane with life-threatening storm surge, damaging winds, and significant flooding.
Flooding rain is often the most impactful aspect of tropical systems. In terms of rainfall amounts, much of southeastern Texas is looking at 5 to 10 inches, with locally higher amounts up to 15 inches. Most of this rain will fall on Monday and Tuesday.
Jul 06, 12:27 PM
Now a tropical storm, Beryl expected to strengthen before hitting Texas
Beryl remains a tropical storm with winds of 60 mph as it churns in the Gulf of Mexico as of Saturday morning, but it is expected to strengthen before hitting Texas on Sunday with potential Category 1 strength.
On Saturday, Beryl may take some time to recover, but is forecast to begin strengthening by the end of the day. The storm is moving into favorable conditions for hurricanes, with warm water and limited wind shear.
The track from the National Hurricane Center takes Beryl towards the Texas coast by late Sunday night into early Monday, likely as a strong Category 1 Hurricane.
Currently, the most likely landfall location is around Matagorda Island, just east of Corpus Christi, but that will likely need to be adjusted as the storm’s track becomes more “fine-tuned” in the next day or so.
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