Tropical Storm Beryl, which had already wreaked havoc across the Caribbean as a hurricane, is intensifying once again and is expected to make landfall as a hurricane for the third time, this time on the Texas coast. By early Saturday, the storm was hovering approximately 495 miles south-east of Corpus Christi, Texas, packing maximum sustained winds near 60mph. The storm’s tropical-storm-force winds extended outward up to 105 miles from its center, threatening to unleash a torrent of rain and powerful winds upon land.
As the storm turns toward the north-west later Saturday and north/north-westward by Sunday night, it is anticipated to re-intensify to a category 1 hurricane by the time it reaches Texas early Monday. However, the National Weather Service has advised residents to prepare for the possibility of stronger winds, akin to a category 2 hurricane.
There is still some uncertainty surrounding the storm’s exact strength and track, but one thing is certain: the residents of Texas should be bracing for impact. “An increasing risk of damaging hurricane-force winds and life-threatening storm surge” is expected, the advisory states.
Beryl’s journey began in Grenada’s Carriacou island, where it made landfall as a category 4 hurricane on Monday. The storm then ravaged St Vincent and the Grenadines, leaving a trail of destruction and at least six fatalities in its wake. The private island of Mustique, also in the storm’s path, reported “significant superficial damage” but fortunately, its core infrastructure remained intact.
Effects of Hurricane BerylAs the storm continued its perilous path, it ripped roofs off schools, crumbled homes, and stripped trees of their leaves on the tiny island of Mayreau, home to 360 people. Resident James Alexander recalled the chaos, saying, “Everything was flying all over the place… I saw a tank full of water lifted up and swirl in the air.”
Beryl later intensified to a category 5 storm, astonishing experts with its rapid strengthening. The storm passed south of Jamaica before traveling, as a category 5 storm, to hit Tulum on the Yucatán peninsula of Mexico on Friday as a category 2 hurricane. Although it toppled trees, the storm caused no injuries or deaths as it moved across the peninsula.
As Beryl again re-intensifies, the former hurricane is expected to conclude its 3,000-mile journey somewhere along the lower or middle Texas coast, where it will drop 5-10 inches of rain and potentially produce a few tropical tornadoes around Houston. Residents of Texas would do well to heed the warning of Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who urged people to “get to higher ground, shelters, or the homes of friends or family elsewhere.” He added, “Don’t hesitate, material possessions can be replaced.”