Hurricane Harvey Slams Texas And Settles In
Hurricane Harvey slammed into Texas Friday night as a Category 4 hurricane. The monster storm made landfall near Rockport at 10 p.m and moved very little through the night.
Harvey weakened to a Category 1 hurricane by 7 a.m. CDT but the storm is expected to linger along the Texas coast into the middle of next week.
At 11 am. Saturday Harvey’s center was was located west of Victoria, moving Northeast at 2 miles per hour. Peak winds were 75 MPH. Victoria has received almost 17 inches of rain.
A tide gauge in Port Lavaca reported storm surge of 6.4 feet, the National Hurricane Center said.
Around 250,000 people were without power Saturday morning and that number is expected to increase.
‘Catastrophic’ Damage and Injuries In Rockport
The small town of Rockport,located 30 miles east of Corpus Christi, took a direct hit from Harvey with extensive damage to structures and homes. The town’s historic downtown area was particularly hard hit.
Rockport City Manager Kevin Carruth told the Corpus Christi ABC affiliate “The roof of a senior center collapsed injuring several inside the building. Rescuers were able to take the injured to a local jail that is being used as a medical center during the storm.”
Carruth later tweeted 128 people, including several journalists,were evacuated from the Fairfield Inn suffered heavy wind damage and 128 people including several journalists had to be evacuated.
Roads around Rockport are still littered with storm debris making travel difficult and cell phone service is down across the area.
#harvey Rockport pic.twitter.com/SkZSUvTgwu
— Jim Edds (@ExtremeStorms) August 26, 2017
What to Expect From Harvey In Coming Days
The National Hurricane Center warns Texas residents that Harvey will be a long term event and they should not be complacent about the danger. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner urged drivers to stay off the roads. “People need to know, this is not a one-, two-day event and done,” he said.
The following information is from the 7 a.m. Hurricane Harvey Update:
Storm Surge
Life threatening storm surges of 4-7 feet may be possible beginning late this morning and lasting through Saturday night. Storm surge damage could include buildings being scrubbed from foundations and coastal roads being washed out. Floating debris can also be expected in areas experiencing storm surge.
Flooding Rains
Extreme amounts of rain will fall over southeastern Texas. Rainfall totals could approach 3 feet in some areas. Residents in flood prone areas should be prepared to evacuate if waters rise. “Catastrophic life-threatening flooding is still expected due to the heavy rainfall that is expected over the next several days.”
Tornadoes
Isolated tropical tornadoes can be expected primarily east of a line from Aransas to Beeville. These tornadoes can form with little warning so residents should be prepared to seek shelter quickly. Tropical tornadoes are typically short lived.
National Compass will continue to update this developing story.
