Tropical Storm Edouard nears Texas and Louisiana, bringing heavy rain and flood risk
Tropical Storm Edouard was approaching the U.S. Gulf Coast on Tuesday and is expected to strengthen before making landfall in Texas later in the day, threatening heavy rainfall and flash flooding.
Storm approaches the coast
Tropical Storm Edouard was moving toward the Gulf of Mexico coast early Tuesday, with forecasters at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) expecting it to make landfall in Texas later that day. As of Monday night, Edouard was still a tropical depression, but it was forecast to strengthen before reaching land.
Early Tuesday, the storm was located about 100 km (65 miles) south-southeast of Cameron, Louisiana, and 145 km (90 miles) southeast of Port Arthur, Texas. It had maximum sustained winds of 65 km/h (40 mph) and was moving west-northwest at 13 km/h (8 mph).
Main concern: flooding
Texas Governor Greg Abbott said the main hazard expected from the storm is flooding. Forecasters predicted 7 to 15 cm (3 to 6 inches) of rain for the Houston metropolitan area, with up to 22 cm (9 inches) possible in some areas along the state's upper coast. The NHC said rainfall rates could exceed 10 cm (4 inches) per hour in places, raising the risk of flash flooding in low-lying and urban areas.
"This is our first big storm of the season, and I tell you, Texas is prepared," Orlando Alanis of the Texas Division of Emergency Management said at a news conference, according to AP.
Abbott added that crews worked Monday to clear dry vegetation that could be ignited by lightning strikes and spark fast-moving wildfires.
Other tropical activity
Meanwhile, the remnants of Tropical Storm Dolly brought rain and thunderstorms to parts of Haiti, the Dominican Republic, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and the Bahamas, the NHC reported.
In the Pacific, Tropical Storm Lowell was located Monday night about 1,015 km (630 miles) southeast of Hilo, Hawaii, with maximum sustained winds of 110 km/h (70 mph); it was forecast to rapidly strengthen into a major hurricane by Wednesday.
Also in the Pacific, Tropical Storm Marie formed early Tuesday off Mexico's southwestern coast but posed no threat to land. Separately, Hurricane Karina became a hurricane on Sunday and strengthened into a powerful Category 4 storm by Monday, with winds of 222 km/h (140 mph); it also was not threatening land, forecasters said.
