Tropical Storm Beryl got a little stronger on Sunday night as it closed in on the Texas coast.
The National Hurricane Center still expects Beryl to become a hurricane before moving onshore Monday morning, and forecasters didn’t rule out the possibility of rapid intensification just before landfall.
Forecasters said the center of Beryl will likely make landfall along the middle Texas coast roughly between Matagorda Bay and Freeport early on Monday morning.
As of 10 p.m. CDT Sunday, Tropical Storm Beryl was located about 110 miles east of Corpus Christi, Texas, and was tracking to the north-northwest at 10 mph.
Beryl’s winds were at 70 mph late Sunday. Hurricane-force winds begin at 74 mph.
The hurricane center said Beryl should track to the north-northwest through tonight, with a turn toward the north on Monday. On the forecast track, the center of Beryl is expected to make landfall on the middle Texas coast early Monday.
Forecasters said hurricane conditions will be possible in the hurricane watch areas by early Monday, and tropical storm conditions could begin by tonight.
Here is a look at the warnings in effect late Sunday:
* A hurricane warning is in effect for the Texas coast from Mesquite Bay northward to Port Bolivar.
* A tropical storm warning is in effect for the Texas coast south of Mesquite Bay to Port Mansfield and the Texas coast north of San Luis Pass to Sabine Pass.
* A storm surge warning is in effect from Mesquite Bay to Sabine Pass, including Matagorda Bay and Galveston Bay.
The hurricane center said 4 to 7 feet of storm surge will be possible in areas along the Texas coast. Areas as far east as Cameron, La., could get 1 to 3 feet of surge.
Beryl is expected to bring 5 to 10 inches of rain with localized amounts of 15 inches is expected to areas along the Texas coast and eastern Texas. That rain will begin today and last through Monday night.
Considerable flash flooding will be possible in localized areas, forecasters said.
If that wasn’t enough, tornadoes will be possible overnight for parts of Texas, especially east of where the center approaches the coast.
The anticipated landfall for Beryl will be the third one for the storm. It made its first landfall on July 1 in the Windward Islands as a Category 4 hurricane with 150 mph winds. The second landfall was July 5 on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula as a strong Category 2 hurricane with 110 mph winds.
Beryl strengthened to a Category 5 for several hours after moving into the Caribbean, making history as the earliest Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic on record.