North Texas now within the probable path of Beryl

Beryl is inching closer to the Texas coast, and the latest forecast shows that the storm could hit the southern part of the state before moving north — affecting Houston and the Dallas-Fort Worth area at some point next week.

The tropical storm, expected to regain strength in the Gulf of Mexico, made landfall again Friday morning over Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula after blowing past the Cayman Islands and Jamaica, devastating a number of islands .

Beryl tore through the Caribbean earlier this week as a powerful Category 4 hurricane, killing at least six people. It continues to make its way west-northwest but at a decreasing speed, according to the National Hurricane Center.

As Beryl gets closer to the Texas coast, the NHC said there is an increasing risk of strong winds, storm surge and heavy rainfall in portions of southern Texas later this weekend and into next week.

Beryl could make landfall in Texas as a Category 1 hurricane

On Friday afternoon, NHC issued a hurricane watch for the Texas coast, from the mouth of the Rio Grande river northward to Sargent. A storm surge watch has also been issued for the same area.

A hurricane watch means that hurricane conditions are possible within the watch area.  A watch is typically issued 48 hours before the anticipated first occurrence of tropical-storm-force winds, conditions that make outside preparations difficult or dangerous.

A storm surge watch means there is a possibility of life-threatening inundation, from rising water moving inland from the coastline, in the indicated locations during the next 48 hours.

On the current track, Beryl could make landfall as a Category 1 hurricane on Monday near Corpus Christi, before moving inland.

Beryl could reach the Houston area late Monday or early Tuesday as a tropical storm, and will continue to weaken before possibly affecting Dallas-Fort Worth, according to NHC .

The North Texas region is now in the five-day outlook cone with Beryl downgrading to a tropical depression next week. For North Texas residents, this means there will likely be tropical rains next Tuesday night into Wednesday. Severe weather is likely to affect the area due to the storm.

Beryl was the earliest Category 5 hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic basin, and was only the second Category 5 storm recorded in July since 2005, according to the NHC.