Forecasters issued a hurricane warning for parts of the Texas coast as Tropical Storm Hanna threatened to bring heavy rain, rough waters and strong winds Saturday, all while another tropical storm approached the Caribbean.
Hanna was centered about 300 kilometers east of Corpus Christi, Texas, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said Friday night. The storm had maximum sustained winds around 85 kph and was moving west at 17 kph.
Hanna was forecast to make landfall as a hurricane Saturday afternoon or early evening. A hurricane warning is in effect for Baffin Bay to Mesquite Bay, a span that includes Corpus Christi. A storm surge waring is in effect for Baffin Bay to Sargent. A tropical storm warning is in effect from the mouth of the Rio Grande River to Baffin Bay and from Mesquite Bay to San Luis Pass.
Forecasters said Hanna could bring 13 to 25 centimeters of rain and coastal swells that could cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
Hanna broke the record as the earliest eighth Atlantic named storm, according to Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach. The previous record was Harvey on August 3, 2005, Klotzbach tweeted.
Tropical Storm Gonzalo was also the earliest Atlantic named storm for its place in the alphabet. The previous record was held by Tropical Storm Gert, which formed on July 24, 2005. So far this year, Cristobal, Danielle, Edouard and Fay also set records for being the earliest named Atlantic storm for their alphabetic order.
Gonzalo was moving at 30 kph while its maximum sustained winds weakened to 65 kph, according to the National Hurricane Center’s Friday night update. It was centered about 550 kilometers east of the southern Windward Islands.
Officials said that those in the Windward Islands should monitor the storm as it is expected to approach the islands Saturday. Some strengthening was possible, but the storm is expected to weaken as it moves into the Caribbean Sea.
A tropical storm warning has been issued for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Tobago and Grenada and its dependencies. A tropical storm warning is in effect for several places, including St. Lucia, Tobago and Grenada. Forecasters said Gonzalo could bring 5 to 13 centimeters of rain.
