Hurricane Hanna makes landfall in Texas, first hurricane of 2020 season
Hurricane Hanna is moving through southern Texas and is forecast to enter Mexico as a tropical storm later this weekend, forecasters say.
Hanna is moving west-southwest at 9 mph and is about 30 miles north-northeast from McAllen, Texas, and 35 miles west from Port Mansfield, Texas, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 11 p.m. advisory Saturday. The storm has maximum sustained winds of 75 mph with higher gusts, which weakened from 85 mph.
Hanna made landfall on Padre Island, Texas, at 6 p.m. and the eye of the storm reached the mainland two hours later, forecasters say.
The storm’s hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 30 miles from its center, with tropical storm-force winds reaching outward to 105 miles, according to the hurricane center.
The forecast shows a gradual turn toward the west-southwest and should continue through Sunday, according to the hurricane center.
Hanna is expected to weaken rapidly as it moves inland and should turn back into a depression by Sunday or Monday as it moves into Mexico.
Watches/Warnings
▪ A tropical storm warning is in effect for the Texas-Mexico coast from Barra el Mezquital, Mexico, to Port Mansfield, Texas. Another warning was issued from Baffin Bay to Port O’Connor, Texas.
▪ A hurricane warning is in effect in Texas from Port Mansfield to Baffin Bay.
▪ A storm surge warning is in effect in Texas from Port Mansfield to Port O’Conner.
“Interests along the Texas and Louisiana coast should monitor the progress of this system,” forecasters wrote.
The storm is forecast to produce 6 to 12 inches of rain, with isolated areas possibly seeing up to 18 inches of rain through Sunday night in South Texas. This might cause “life-threatening flash flooding, rapid rises on small streams and isolated minor to moderate river flooding in south Texas,” according to the hurricane center.
Those who live along the Texas and Louisiana coasts, and inland to the Mexican states of Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and northern Tamaulipas might also see between three to five inches of rain, according to the forecast. Swells along the Texas and Louisiana coasts are also expected to increase, which might cause “life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.”
Hanna, which formed late Thursday, is the eighth named storm of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season and the second to form this week.
Tropical Storm Gonzalo formed in the Atlantic on Wednesday but dissipated Saturday evening as its remnants move through the Caribbean, according to the hurricane center.
Another system to watch: A tropical wave near the west of Africa that is expected to move westward across the Atlantic during the next several days. Forecasters say the wave might see some development early next week when it reaches the western tropical Atlantic. Its formation chances in the next five days is 60 percent, according to the hurricane center.
This story was originally published July 23, 2020 at 11:10 PM.
