CNN Central News & Network–ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: Hurricane Beryl swept into Texas early Monday with heavy rains and powerful winds, knocking out power to 1.5 million homes and businesses and flooding streets with fast-rising waters as first responders raced to rescue stranded residents.
Beryl had already cut a deadly path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean before turning toward Texas. The Category 1 hurricane hit land just before 4 am, then weakened to a tropical storm about five hours later. The National Hurricane Center said damaging winds and flash flooding will continue as Beryl continues pushing inland. At least one death was reported.
High waters quickly began to close streets in storm-weary Houston, which was again under flood warnings after heavy storms in recent months washed out neighbourhoods.
CenterPoint Energy in Houston reported 1.5 million homes and businesses were without power. Flood warnings were in effect across a wide stretch of the Texas coast, where a powerful storm surge pushed water ashore, and further inland as heavy rain continued to fall.
Police in the Houston suburb of Rosenberg urged residents to stay off the roads, reporting that one of its high-water vehicles had been hit by a falling tree while returning from a rescue. Video footage showed heavy street flooding in the barrier island city of Galveston, and Houston was under a flash flood warning for most of the morning as heavy rain continued to soak the city.
