Tropical Storm Beryl is expected to intensify into a Category 1 hurricane by Sunday as it moves northwestward over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The U.S. National Hurricane Center has issued hurricane warnings for much of the Texas coast, anticipating landfall in the Houston area early Monday.
Forecasters have cautioned that Beryl could bring strong winds and dump 5 to 10 inches (13 to 25 centimeters) of rain along the Texas coast and beyond. Coastal areas have already begun experiencing rising water levels, prompting the evacuation of one beach town. The U.S. Coast Guard has closed the ports of Houston, Texas City, Freeport, and Galveston due to deteriorating sea conditions.
In response to the storm threat, school systems, including Houston’s, the largest in the state, have announced closures for Monday.
National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan warned on Sunday afternoon that residents had only a few more hours to prepare. “If you have been asked to leave by local officials, please do so,” he said.
Acting Texas Governor Dan Patrick said Beryl “will be a deadly storm for people who are directly in that path.” He declared 120 counties to be in a disaster area.
The approaching storm has led to closures and vessel traffic restrictions at several ports from Houston to Corpus Christi, including the major crude oil export hub in the U.S. These measures could disrupt crude oil exports, shipments to refineries, and the distribution of motor fuel from these facilities.
Temperatures in the region are expected to soar above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) in the coming days, with heat indices reaching as high as 108 on Sunday. Parts of eastern Texas are under flood watch as the storm, with maximum wind speeds of 60 mph (96 kph) as of Sunday morning, approaches.
Earlier in the week, the storm, which had briefly intensified into the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record, caused significant devastation across the Caribbean. It affected Jamaica, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and brought heavy rainfall to northern Venezuela. At least 11 fatalities have been reported, with buildings damaged, power lines and trees downed.
Beryl made its last landfall on Friday, crossing Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and causing power outages in some areas. Fortunately, it largely spared the top beach destinations there and resulted in no casualties. Videos from Cancun’s international airport on Saturday showed crowds of tourists rescheduling flights home after the storm.
With Beryl now approaching Texas, the National Weather Service has issued warnings of storm surges potentially causing coastal flooding and rip currents.
OIL REFINERIES
The majority of offshore oil and gas production in the northern Gulf is located to the east of Beryl’s projected path. As a precautionary measure, several oil producers, such as Shell (SHEL.L) and Chevron (CVX.N), had evacuated personnel from their offshore production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico ahead of the storm.
Citgo Petroleum Corp announced plans to maintain minimal production at its Corpus Christi refinery as Beryl approaches the coast. Meanwhile, Gibson Energy (GEI.TO), which operates a significant oil terminal in Corpus Christi, indicated that operations were ongoing but stated readiness to take additional measures depending on the storm’s forecast.
