The National Hurricane Center issued a Tropical Storm Warning for the northwestern Gulf Coast on Monday, Aug. 31, stretching from Port Bolivar, Texas, to the Vermilion/Cameron Parish line in Louisiana as a Gulf system bears down on the upper Texas coast.
The warning came after the NHC upgraded the disturbance formerly known as Invest 97L to Potential Tropical Cyclone 5. As of 11 a.m. CDT Monday, the system carried maximum sustained winds of 35 mph and sat 130 miles south of Morgan City, Louisiana, moving west-northwest at 5 mph, according to Click Orlando.
By 2 p.m. EDT Monday, the NHC confirmed the system had strengthened into Tropical Depression Five. Forecasters expect it to become a tropical storm before making landfall along the upper Texas or southwestern Louisiana coast on Tuesday, Sept. 1. If winds reach 39 mph, it would be named Tropical Storm Edouard.
Flood Watch covers Montgomery County
The National Weather Service office in Houston/Galveston issued a Flood Watch for Montgomery County, which includes The Woodlands, at 10:14 a.m. CDT Monday. The watch runs through 7 a.m. CDT Thursday, Sept. 3.
The NWS expects 3 to 5 inches of rain across the area, with isolated totals of 6 to 9 inches. The heaviest amounts are forecast east of I-45. Rainfall rates could exceed 3 to 4 inches per hour in the strongest downpours, according to the Flood Watch posted by Woodlands Online.
Moderate to heavy rain tied to the system could begin as early as late Monday night and last into late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning.
AccuWeather projected a broader corridor of 2 to 4 inches around Houston and southeastern Texas through Wednesday, with total rainfall from the system potentially reaching 12 inches in some spots, according to the Naples Daily News.
Why the NHC acted before the storm formed
NHC Deputy Director Jamie Rhome explained the agency's decision to issue advisories before the system officially became a storm. "If a system is near land and there is potential for development, the National Hurricane Center won't wait before it issues advisories, even if the system hasn't become an actual storm," Rhome said, according to the Herald Tribune. "This gives residents time to prepare."
Montgomery County Emergency Management was monitoring the system as of Monday, according to Woodlands Online.
What residents should do
The NWS urged residents in flood-prone areas to stay alert for possible Flood Warnings and be ready to act if flooding develops. FOX 26 Houston meteorologist Aaron Barker advised residents on Sunday, Aug. 30, to review hurricane safety plans and keep enough supplies on hand for three days without outside help.
The NHC updates its tropical weather outlook every six hours at nhc.noaa.gov. Local conditions are available at weather.gov/hgx.
