SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — The effects of Tropical Depression Harvey are expected to hit the Lower Rio Grande Valley beginning this evening.
A meeting was held yesterday morning with every emergency management coordinator in the area. Cameron County will continue to monitor the situation.
“Things can change on a moment’s notice, but it seems to be holding fast. We’ll keep our fingers crossed, but people should use this as an opportunity to prepare themselves for the rain,” County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr. said.
Concerning the county’s coastal areas, Treviño’s office said, “At this time, we are not requiring guests to evacuate, but want to make sure all precautionary measures are taken in case the current storm track holds true.”
South Padre Island Mayor Pro-Tem Dennis Stahl was on his way home yesterday to have a protective shutter fixed at his house in preparation for tropical storm winds and rain expected to hit today.
Homes in his neighborhood had already covered their windows with windstorm shutters.
Stahl urges all residents to be prepared to evacuate the Island if necessary by tomorrow if the storm turns.
According to information from officials, the Island is expecting wind gusts up to 39 to 50 miles per hour and 2 to 5 inches of rain beginning as early as this afternoon through tomorrow afternoon.
Stahl said the city has already begun removing all equipment, trash cans and beach patrol stands in anticipation of the storm as a safety precaution.
Localized flooding is very possible.
“Our dunes within the city are good enough to brave the potential high tides expected to hit the Island,” Stahl said.
But he added that Mother Nature is unpredictable and can raise some challenges when preparing for bad weather.
Dave Evans was one Island resident who took advantage of the free sandbags Wednesday. He and his fiancé live in an older house that is prone to flooding during heavy rainfall.
“The master bedroom floods every time the rain gets very strong. I think our home is below sea level,” Evans said.
Evans is still relatively new to the Island — he has only lived there for a year — but his fiancé has lived there for 25 years.
“She’s been doing this a long time. I’m still new to it. She was here for the last hurricane in 2008,” Evans said. “I would’ve gotten out of here (during Hurricane Dolly).”
In the event that they need to leave, Evans has a full tank of gas ready, he said.
Treviño advises families to have an emergency plan in place and stock up on food, water, and batteries.
“It’s a good test run for all of us. We’re still at the height of the season, so it’s far from over,” Treviño said.
Wind gusts could rise to 39 to 50 miles per hour when the effects of the storm fully hit the Valley. Two to four inches of rain are expected, according to the National Weather Service in Brownsville.
If rainfall or thunderstorms hit the Valley on Thursday morning or afternoon, they will likely be associated with the sea breeze front moving westward, said Joseph Tomaselli, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Brownsville.
Treviño suggested that any property owner with furniture lying around in the front or backyard should bring that indoors. RVs and trailers should be kept secure, he added.
There is currently a tropical storm watch and hurricane watch for the Lower Texas Coast. The impact will largely be on the coast, beaches, and the Gulf of Mexico, according to NWS Brownsville.
“There will be high surf conditions and large waves on the beaches of South Padre Island and Boca Chica. It is absolutely a situation where people should not be swimming in the water,” Tomaselli said. “I know a lot of folks might be curious and want to walk on the beach to see the big waves and swim in the water, but we do not recommend that at all.”
Vehicles can easily get stranded anywhere on the beach in those conditions, Tomaselli added.
On Wednesday afternoon, Treviño ordered a temporary closure of the beach accesses and Boca Chica Beach that will begin today.
“This is a very fluid situation. The forecast for the National Hurricane Center has Harvey making landfall late Friday night somewhere north of Corpus Christi and south of Houston, but that situation could easily change after four to six hours,” Tomaselli said. “We advise people to keep an eye out through at least early this weekend.”
Conditions are expected to improve by next week.
