Update: 12:10 p.m.
Houston ISD has canceled all classes and offices for Monday and Tuesday. This includes professional development and recruiting sessions. For continuing updates: monitor houstonisd.org. You can also follow the district on Twitter and Facebook: Twitter.com/HoustonISD and Facebook.com/HoustonISD.
Original story
Beryl, the tropical storm/hurricane we didn’t have to worry about until we did appears to be heading toward Matagorda which means most of the Houston area will be hit with rain, high winds and probable flooding.
Expected to reach Category 1 status by the time it makes landfall, Beryl is predicted to arrive sometime very late Sunday or early Monday. Its effects are already being felt to the south in Texas.
Beryl had dropped to 60 mph but was intensifying as it traveled over open water between Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and the Gulf Coast. It has already reportedly been responsible for the deaths of 11 people in its travels through the the Caribbean and through Mexico.
According to Space City Weather, if Beryl comes in near Matagorda, it would put Houston right in the area of the highest winds and heaviest rain. The weather site also noted that there’s a strong possibility of power outages. Anticipating this, CenterPoint Energy sent out an email saying they’d be on the job and that customers could receive electric outage updates every 15 minutes at CentePointEnergy.com/StormCenter.
In perhaps a holdover from COVID-19 experiences, one couple from the Houston area went to Sam’s on Saturday and found a long line of people waiting to buy toilet paper. Still there was little evidence that people were boarding up their houses and hardware stores, at least in some areas, were far from packed.
In terms of high winds, Space City Weather wrote: “The greatest impacts are likely to be in locations such as Sargent, Freeport, and Lake Jackson. However, tropical storm-force winds are also likely along Galveston Island and large parts of the Houston metro area, particularly to the south and west of the city.
“Matagorda, Wharton, Fort Bend, and Brazoria counties are likely to see the strongest winds, with sustained winds of 45 to 75 mph, and higher gusts. Most of the rest of the Houston metro area is at risk for winds of 35 to 55 mph, with higher gusts.”
As the National Weather Service noted, tornados could also be in the mix of weather hitting our area.
This story will be updated as events develop.
Update with school closures for Monday, July 8:
Alief ISD
Brazosport ISD (Monday and Tuesday)
Cleveland ISD
Dickinson ISD
Fort Bend ISD
Waller ISD
Alvin Community College
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
