Officials urge residents to prepare as Houston-area counties under tropical storm warning as Beryl approaches

State and Houston area officials are awaiting the arrival of Hurricane Beryl, which is expected to make landfall in the early morning hours of July 8.

The preview

According to an 11 a.m. National Weather Service update on July 7, Beryl is a 60 mph tropical storm, but is expected to make landfall as an 85 mph Category 1 hurricane. The track has shifted slightly eastward with an expected landfall near or just east of Matagorda Bay in early July.

According to the NWS, the storm is expected to produce between 5 and 10 inches of precipitation in the region, with up to 15 inches where the heaviest rains occur. Several counties in Greater Houston are experiencing warming weather, with sustained winds expected to range from 39 to 73 mph, including Harris, Fort Bend, Brazoria, Montgomery and Galveston counties.

Parts of several counties, including Galveston, are also under hurricane and storm warnings, according to the NWS.

The Texas Division of Emergency Management and Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick held a news conference on July 7 to warn coastal residents to prepare for Beryl’s impacts.

Patrick urged residents in coastal areas from Corpus Christi to Galveston Bay to make final preparations or evacuations before July 8 and to avoid road travel on July 8 as the storm makes landfall.

“It’s going to be a heavy rainstorm, but it’s going to move quickly,” Patrick said. “But it’s going to be across the entire state, so areas like College Station could see significant rain and flooding.”

Although Beryl is still a tropical storm, the NWS still expects the storm to strengthen into a hurricane before making landfall on July 8.