Forecast shows Tropical Storm Hanna gradually strengthening ahead of Texas landfall Saturday

Tropical Storm Hanna is continuing on its track toward the Central and South Texas coasts and is expected to make landfall on Saturday.

The storm was about 285 miles East of Corpus Christi and is currently moving west-northwest at about 9 mph, according to the National Weather Service. The storm is expected to make a turn toward the west tonight and continue in a general westward direction through the weekend.

Wind speeds are currently at about 40 mph and forecasters expect the storm to gradually strengthen ahead of landfall. Tropical storm-force winds extend about 45 miles from the center of the storm, according to the weather center’s update.

The storm is expected to bring 4 to 8 inches of rain with isolated maximum totals of 12 inches through Sunday night in South Texas, the forecast states. Flash flooding is possible as a result of the rainfall.

Corpus Christi experienced heavy rainfall late Thursday morning and is expected to see flooding and three to six inches of rain through Monday.

Tropical storm warnings, watches

As of Friday morning, a tropical storm warning is in effect for:

• Mouth of the Rio Grande to San Luis Pass Texas

A tropical storm watch is in effect for:

• San Luis Pass to High Island Texas

Gov. Greg Abbott said on Thursday that resources were on standby across the state in anticipation of the storm.

The Texas Division of Emergency Management has several agencies on standby to provide support at the request of local officials, including:

• Texas A&M Forest Service: Saw Crews and Incident Management Teams
• Texas A&M Engineering and Extension Service: Texas A&M Task Force One and Two Search and Rescue Teams
• Texas Parks and Wildlife Department: Boat Teams to support Water Rescue Operations
• Texas Military Department: High Profile Vehicle packages
• Department of State Health Services: Emergency Medical Task Force severe weather packages
• Texas Department of Transportation: High Profile Vehicles
• Texas Department of Public Safety – Texas Highway Patrol: Search and Rescue Aircraft with hoist capability and the Tactical Marine Unit

More:  What roads are prone to flooding in Corpus Christi?

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