Tropical Storm Cindy expected to hit Texas-Louisiana border overnight

Airplanes are lined up on the tarmac at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Wednesday, June 21, 2017, in Houston. Flights were delayed departing from Bush Airport due to the wind. Airplanes are lined up on the tarmac at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Wednesday, June 21, 2017, in Houston. Flights were delayed departing from Bush Airport due to the wind. Photo: Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle Photo: Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 30 Caption Close Tropical Storm Cindy expected to hit Texas-Louisiana border overnight 1 / 30 Back to Gallery

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With Houston-area residents stocked up on supplies and work sites battened down for the onslaught, Tropical Storm Cindy made landfall at early Thursday morning, bringing high winds, heavy rains and flooding to portions of southeast Texas and the Gulf Coast.

At 4 a.m., the National Weather Service confirmed that the storm made landfall in the southwestern Louisiana area.

The storm is moving toward the north at about 12 mph. Maximum sustained winds have decreased to about 40 mph.

Forecasters expect the storm to continue weakening during the next 48 hours. Cindy should weaken to a tropical depression later today, the NWS said.

At 10 p.m., the storm was about 100 miles off Galveston and had begun to move north-northwest, steadily approaching the Texas-Louisiana coastline, according to the National Weather Service.

Forecasters predicted that rainfall would be the main threat to the Houston area.

Some coastal areas along southeast Texas already saw an impact, with Galveston experiencing gusts of wind exceeding 40 mph. Tree limbs were down in some coastal areas and isolated power outages were experienced.

Power outages knocked out service to about 800 homes and businesses about 7:45 p.m. in Galveston, though service was quickly restored.

Riding the surf

While Cindy isn’t the biggest or worst storm to ever hit the Texas coast, it is the first storm of this year’s hurricane season to threaten the Houston area.

“This is a good test run,” Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said late Wednesday. “Hopefully everybody now pays attention that we are in hurricane season.”

The storm — which formed earlier this week near the Yucatan Peninsula — was expected to move inland near the Texas-Louisiana line, shifting the worst of the heavy rains and flooding away from Houston and into southern Louisiana and Mississippi.

Alabama and portions of Florida were also expected to get heavy rains and some flooding, with a tropical storm warning posted from San Luis Pass at the southern end of Galveston Island to the Florida Panhandle.

Rainfall of 1-3 inches was expected in Harris County, with the heaviest rains expected early Thursday morning. Tropical storm warnings were also in effect for Chambers, Galveston and Liberty counties.

A storm surge of 1-3 feet is expected along the coast.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, who joined Emmett at a press conference Wednesday, urged residents not to let up on their guard.

“If you don’t have to be out late ... to the wee hours of the morning, certainly turn around, don’t drown,” Turner said.

Residents took the threat seriously enough on Wednesday, buying water and stocking up on canned goods, flashlights, batteries and other supplies. Some stores were nearly out of stock by Wednesday morning.

Emergency responders, transportation and flood control experts remained on alert late Wednesday in case the storm took a turn for Houston.

READ ALSO: What to do when flooding damages your vehicle

The Texas Department of Transportation identified more than 35 locations around the greater Houston area where officials expected high water to collect in case barricades were needed to stop people from driving into the high water.

On Wednesday, crews started fanning out to probable locations where they would be needed to address street flooding.

TxDOT crews were working “to remove debris and place barricades if and where necessary,” TxDOT spokeswoman Raquelle Lewis said.

“We have staff ready to do the same throughout the district if we have flooding,” she said.

Flights were facing delays late Wednesday at Bush Intercontinental Airport from increasing wind speeds, though none had been canceled by 8 p.m.

A voluntary evacuation was ordered for the Bolivar Peninsula, which has been hard hit by flooding from hurricanes and tropical storms for decades.

Some residents packed to move as others braced for the storm. TxDOT crews worked to remove debris and place barricades where needed along the roadways, which already were overtaken periodically by waves in some areas by mid-afternoon.

In Galveston, power outages about 7:45 p.m. knocked out service to about 800 homes and businesses on the island, though service was quickly restored.

Earlier in the day, however, the dark clouds, sporadic rain and waves crashing along the shore didn’t deter beach-goers and surfers.

Donna Stauber, her three daughters and nine grandchildren came from the Waco area to enjoy a week-long family vacation — and they weren’t about to let a little rain stop their fun.

“We checked the weather carefully and kept abreast of what’s going on - and the locals tell us we’re okay,” the 61-year-old said.

Stauber’s 11-year-old granddaughter, Sydney, said the storm made their beach trip better.

“It’s more fun that regular days because of the big waves,” she said. “At one point I was the only person in the ocean.”

READ ALSO: Houston streets that are prone to flooding, high water

Photo: John D. Harden, Houston Chronicle Tropical Storm Cindy as of 2 p.m. Wednesday.

City of Galveston officials were optimistic the storm’s island impacts would be minimal, but stressed the island is well-prepared.

“We are monitoring it closely,” said city spokeswoman Jaree Fortin.

Eric Chapa, 31, had been keeping an eye on the storm all day to spot good surfing conditions.

“Today’s a good day,” he said with a smile as he headed out to hit the waves late afternoon.

Chad Johnson, a lifelong surfer living in Santa Fe, said the threat of bad weather didn’t concern him.

“Heck, no, I’m not worried,” he said. “I love storms — we’ve got a roofing business.”

At a quiet crossroads in Cheek in Jefferson County, several people filled sandbags in the soupy, dripping evening.

“Every time it rains, the street floods,” said Sean Williams, a pipe fitter from nearby Beaumont, as he filled 20 sandbags.

Terence Simon, a Beaumont fire fighter who was filling bags for his mom, said residents shouldn’t be too relaxed about Cindy.

“You can’t be too careful with a tropical storm,” he said. “Allison was a tropical storm that settled over Houston and dumped a ton of rain. ... I’m thinking this could be one of those.”

Weeklong build-up

Cindy started as a disorganized system near the Yucatan Peninsula, but spent most of Tuesday building up over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

On Tuesday, it strengthened into a named tropical storm.

The storm is expected to weaken once it hits landfall, as it curves to the eastward toward Virginia. It is predicted to be a tropical depression by the time it reaches Arkansas early Friday and arrives in Virginia and Delaware by Saturday.

For Houston, sustained winds are expected to range from 20 to 30 mph, but residents along Galveston Bay may see even stronger winds, with gusts up to 40 mph.

The heaviest rains are expected to be east of Interstate 45, said Brian Kyle, National Weather Service meteorologist.

Outside of Texas, the storm is expected to produce 6 to 9 inches with isolated maximum amounts up to 15 inches over southeastern Louisiana, southern Mississippi, southern Alabama, and western portions of the Florida Panhandle through Thursday night. This rainfall could cause life-threatening flash flooding in those areas.

Mark Sloan, coordinator of Harris County’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said weather forecasting is an inexact science, recalling the heavy rains and floods during Memorial Day 2015 that caught many by surprise.“We all need to be prepared,” Sloan said.

Taking care of business

Photo: John D. Harden, Houston Chronicle Airplanes are lined up on the tarmac at George Bush...

Houston-area businesses also took precautions, cleaning and securing construction and other work sites.

“We spend pretty much the whole day picking up debris,” said Mike Dishberger, past president of the Greater Houston Home Builders Association and owner of Sandcastle Homes. “Work slows down to a crawl.”

He said the biggest concern was picking up scattered debris that could “act like missiles” in the winds. Work crews also empty dumpsters and try to tack plywood onto house frames.

Offshore, operators reported pulling workers off 40 oil and gas production platforms, or about 5 percent of the more than 700 manned platforms in the Gulf, and one drilling rig, according to the federal Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.

BP evacuated non-essential personnel from its Mad Dog and Atlantis platforms, but did not expect the storm to be severe enough to warrant total evacuation.

“Our top priority is the safety of all personnel and protecting the environment,” BP said. “We remain prepared to respond as conditions warrant.”

Officials along the Houston Ship Channel also took precautions, but the storm posted a larger threat to the Sabine-Neches Waterway, which includes Port Arthur, Beaumont and Orange, and the Calcasieu Ship Channel, which includes the Port of Lake Charles in Louisiana.

The Coast Guard said it activated a coordination team ahead of the storm in the Sabine and Lake Charles areas, but not in Houston.

“It is just far enough to the east of us here in Houston that Coast Guard measures to close the port were not warranted,” said Steve Nerheim, director of the Coast Guard’s Vessel Traffic Services for Houston and Galveston.

Capt. Robert Shearon, presiding officer for the Houston Pilots who guide ships in and out of the Houston Ship Channel, said they will monitor the situation closely.

“This is an early wake-up call for what we might expect this season,” Shearon said.

By 1 a.m., a steady rain was falling along the path of the North Freeway from the Galleria area toward Spring.

The National Weather Service said scattered showers from Cindy's rain bands were continuing to fall along the southeast Texas coastline and even into parts of central Louisiana and southern Arkansas.

The overall rainfall amounts, however, were expected to be light as the tropical storm continued its march toward the shoreline. NWS forecasters said wind gusts of up to 25 mph were likely.

Staff reporters Brooke A. Lewis, Andrea Rumbaugh, Blake Paterson, Dylan Baddour, Ryan Maye Handy, David Hunn, Collin Eaton, Mike Glenn and Dug Begley contributed to this report.

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