Beryl made landfall along the Texas coast as a Category 1 hurricane at 4 a.m. on Monday, unleashing severe weather as it moved inland before weakening into a tropical storm. 

With sustained winds of over 80 mph, Beryl struck near Matagorda, a coastal community situated between Corpus Christi and Galveston, according to the National Hurricane Center.

More than five hours after landfall, Beryl weakened to a tropical storm, continuing its inland trajectory with sustained winds at 70 mph. 

The storm uprooted trees and knocked over power poles, leaving a trail of destruction and impacting the power grid. 

According to CenterPoint Energy over 2.1 million customers were left without power in eastern Texas. It remains unclear how many Houston customers have lost power. 

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Ports Closed at Condition Zulu

In response to the storm, multiple ports in cities from Houston to Corpus Christi were either closed or faced vessel traffic restrictions. The ports of Corpus Christi, Houston, Galveston, Freeport, and Texas City all shut down after U.S. Coast Guard captains set condition "Zulu" on Sunday.

Flight Cancellations

The storm wreaked havoc on air travel, with nearly 1,000 arriving and departing flights canceled at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, according to FlightAware. 

William P. Hobby Airport, a smaller Houston airport, saw over 225 cancellations. United Airlines, for which Houston is a major hub, suffered the worst operational impacts, with about 14% of its flights (around 400 departures) canceled on Monday.

Loss of Life

Tragically, the storm has claimed lives.

In a suburban part of Harris County, northeast of Houston, a man was killed when a tree fell on his home, trapping him under debris. Sheriff Ed Gonzalez reported on X.

The Sheriff described the incident as "tragic."  In northern Harris County, another tree fell onto a house, killing a 74-year-old woman, according to Gonzalez.

Last week, Beryl carved a path of destruction across the Caribbean, leaving at least 11 people dead and severely damaging infrastructure on several islands. At its peak, Beryl was the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record before making landfall on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula last Friday. It then weakened to a tropical storm and later regained strength before hitting Texas.

Texas First Responders

Across eastern Texas, first responders are actively rescuing people trapped in their cars and homes amid Hurricane Beryl's deluges. Throughout Monday morning, eastern Texas was inundated with "life-threatening storm surge," torrential rain, and powerful wind gusts up to 84 mph in the Houston area, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Sheriff Gonzalez urged drivers to "please stay off the roadways" as heavy rain drenched Houston and its surrounding areas. 

The police department in Rosenberg, a city southwest of Houston, reported conducting water rescues and warned residents about falling trees and ongoing flooding. "Street flooding, downed trees, power outages, and water rescues are all happening right now in Rosenberg," the police department reported on social media. 

"Please stay off the roads. A downed tree even fell on one of our high-water rescue vehicles coming back from a rescue."

In Fort Bend County, officials asked residents to "please stay home until the storm passes." The county's statement noted that trees and debris littered the roads, several roads were flooded, and most traffic signals were out. Deputies were responding to stranded and flooded motorists.

Hurricane Hal Reports on Category 1 Hurricane

Hal Needham, an extreme weather scientist known to Galveston locals as "Hurricane Hal," was up just after 4 a.m. on Monday to monitor the storm and provide live updates. "We've had some pretty big squalls today with widespread power outages," he reported. "I think the storm was a lot stronger than many people expected."

Needham expressed concern about the ongoing power outages, which could leave residents vulnerable to the heat wave expected later this week.

 "This is the hottest time of the year," he warned. "If people still don't have power, there could be serious issues with heat exhaustion and heat-related illnesses, especially for elderly people with health conditions."

Hurricane Beryl is expected to continue weakening as it moves further inland, first transitioning into a tropical storm and then a tropical depression. The storm is projected to head north across the Mississippi Valley and then the Ohio Valley, where it is expected to dissipate on Tuesday and Wednesday.