Flood alert as 90mph Hanna predicted to bring life-threatening waves

SOUTH Texas was on flood alert yesterday as it was hit by severe weather.

Hurricane Hanna – the first of the 2020 Atlantic cyclone season – made landfall twice as a Category 1 storm on Saturday afternoon within the space of little over an hour.

The first landfall happened at around 5pm local time, some 15 miles north of Port Mansfield, with the second taking place nearby in eastern Kenedy County, where Hanna came ashore with maximum sustained winds of 90mph.

Forecasters downgraded Hanna to a tropical storm early yesterday.

Many parts of Texas, including areas near where the hurricane came ashore, have been dealing with a surge in Covid-19 cases in recent weeks.

Forecasters said Hanna could bring as much as 12 inches of rain last night, in addition to coastal swells that could cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.

Some areas in South Texas had already reported receiving up to nine inches of rain, including Cameron County, which borders Mexico.

“It’s been all day,” said Melissa

Elizardi, a spokeswoman for Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino.

In a tweet, President Donald Trump said his administration was monitoring Hanna, along with Hurricane Douglas, which was heading towards Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean.

More than 43,700 people throughout South Texas, including Corpus Christi, Harlingen and Brownsville, were without power on Saturday evening, according to utility provider AEP Texas.

The US Coast Guard was called to help with the rescue of a couple on a boat that was taking on water in a harbour near Corpus Christi, a spokesman said.

A swiftwater rescue team assisted in getting the couple back to land without injuries.

In the spring coastal states rushed to adjust their emergency hurricane plans to account for the virus, and Hanna loomed as the first big test.

South Texas officials’ plans for any possible rescues, shelters and monitoring of the storm will have the pandemic in mind and incorporate social distancing guidelines and mask wearing.

Cameron County planned to open at least three evacuation shelters. Other counties and cities throughout South Texas had also opened shelters, with many requiring face masks.

Governor Greg Abbott said some sheltering would take place in hotel rooms so people could be separated.

“We cannot allow this hurricane to lead to a more catastrophically deadly event by stoking additional spread of Covid-19 that could lead to fatalities,” he said.

Various resources and personnel to respond to the storm were on standby across the state, including search-and-rescue teams and aircraft.