Houston area prepares for Beryl

Beryl, the tropical storm/hurricane we haven’t had to worry about until now, appears to be heading toward Matagorda, meaning most of the Houston area will be hit with rain, high winds, and likely flooding.

Beryl is expected to reach Category 1 status by the time it makes landfall, and is expected to arrive very late Sunday or early Monday. Its effects are already being felt as far south as Texas.

Beryl’s speed had dropped to 60 mph (96 km/h), but it was picking up speed as it moved through open waters between the Yucatan Peninsula and the Gulf Coast. It has reportedly killed 11 people as it has passed through the Caribbean and Mexico.

According to Space City Weather, if Beryl makes landfall near Matagorda, Houston would be in the area of ​​the strongest winds and heaviest rain. The weather site also noted that there is a high possibility of power outages. Anticipating this, CenterPoint Energy sent out an email stating that they would be on site and that customers could receive power outage updates every 15 minutes at CentePointEnergy.com/StormCenter.

A Houston-area couple went to Sam’s on Saturday and found a long line of people waiting to buy toilet paper, perhaps due to the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, there was no evidence that people were barricading their homes, and hardware stores, at least in some areas, were far from crowded.

Regarding high winds, Space City Weather wrote: “The most significant impacts are likely in locations such as Sargent, Freeport and Lake Jackson. However, tropical storm force winds are also likely along Galveston Island and across large portions of the Houston metropolitan area, particularly south and west of the city.”

“Matagorda, Wharton, Fort Bend and Brazoria counties are expected to see the strongest winds, with sustained winds of 45 to 75 mph and higher gusts. Most of the rest of the Houston metro area is experiencing winds of 35 to 55 mph, with higher gusts.”

As the National Weather Service noted, tornadoes could also be part of the weather patterns hitting our area.

This story will be updated as events develop.

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