Tropical Storm Beryl live updates: 2 killed by fallen trees in Houston area

Beryl has weakened to a tropical storm after making landfall as a Category 1 hurricane along Texas' Gulf Coast Monday morning.

The earliest Category 5 Atlantic hurricane in history, the storm killed at least seven people in the Windward Islands before skirting south of Jamaica, shutting down communications, stranding tourists and delivering storm surge and flooding rain to the island.

Latest Developments

_{Jul 8, 11:23 AM}

2.3 million without power in Texas

Power has been knocked out to more than 2.3 million customers in Texas as Hurricane Beryl slams the state with powerful winds and torrential rain.

ABC Houston station KTRK briefly lost power in its newsroom Monday morning.

_{Jul 8, 11:14 AM}

2 killed by fallen trees in Houston area

A 53-year-old man was killed by a fallen tree while riding out Hurricane Beryl with his family, according to Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez.

The man, his wife and children were in a house in Atascocita in the Houston area when an oak tree fell on the roof, hitting the rafters, the sheriff said. The structure then fell on the man, killing him.

His wife and children were not hurt, the sheriff said Monday morning.

Hours later, the sheriff said a 74-year-old woman was killed when a tree fell on a home in Houston.

_{Jul 8, 11:09 AM}

Biden receiving updates, FEMA prepared to respond

President Joe Biden is receiving regular updates on Beryl as the storm rips across Texas, according to a White House official.

Senior White House officials are in close contact with their state and local counterparts and employees from the Federal Emergency Management Agency are standing by to offer support, the official said.

"The U.S. Coast Guard and FEMA have prepositioned response personnel including search and rescue teams, and FEMA has staged bottled water, meals, tarps and electric generators in case they are needed," the official said.

_{Jul 8, 11:09 AM}

Up to 7 inches of rain pounds Houston, Galveston

Up to 7 inches of rain has pounded the Houston and Galveston areas so far and another 2 to 4 inches of rain is in the forecast for the next few hours.

The storm surge has topped 6 feet.

Wind gusts have reached a whopping 94 mph in Freeport, Texas; 82 mph in Galveston Bay, Texas; and 84 mph at Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport.

Flood warnings and tornado warnings are in effect in the Houston area through Monday afternoon.

Tornadoes have also been reported.

-ABC News’ Max Golembo

_{Jul 8, 11:25 AM}

Beryl weakens to tropical storm

Beryl weakened from a hurricane to a tropical storm late Monday morning after making landfall in Texas as a Category 1 hurricane.

_{Jul 8, 11:13 AM}

Serious accidents, transformer fires reported

Hurricane Beryl has caused serious accidents, transformer fires and downed power lines in Spring, Texas, near Houston, according to the Spring Fire Department.

Spring is under a flash flood warning until 1 p.m. local time.

_{Jul 8, 9:36 AM}

Beryl’s latest forecast

As Hurricane Beryl races inland, flash flooding will be a threat as far north as Arkansas, where 3 to 6 inches of rain is possible through Monday night.

Moisture from Beryl is forecast to move into the Ohio Valley by Tuesday and Wednesday. Flooding is possible as far north as Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana.

Wednesday afternoon into Thursday morning, some of that moisture will combine with a stationary front in the Northeast, bringing the possibility of heavy rain to the Interstate 95 corridor Wednesday night.

-ABC News’ Max Golembo

_{Jul 8, 9:30 AM}

650 flights canceled in Houston

At least 650 flights have been canceled in Houston on Monday as Hurricane Beryl pounds the region.

So far, 527 flights set to leave George Bush Intercontinental Airport have been canceled while another 123 flights were dropped at William P. Hobby Airport.

United Airlines said it has suspended operations at George Bush Intercontinental Airport until at least 4 p.m. local time.

_{Jul 8, 8:12 AM}

Power outages fall to 130,000

About 130,000 customers in Texas were without power just before 7 a.m. on Monday, according to PowerOutage.us .

While the total outages fell, the number of customers in the storm’s path with outages rose. In Matagorda and Brazoria counties there were about 13,450 and 40,000 customers without power respectively, according to the tracking site.

-ABC News’ Amanda M. Morris

_{Jul 8, 7:23 AM}

Wind gust of 92 mph recorded in Freeport, Texas

A wind gust of 92 mph was recorded at about 6 a.m. in Freeport, Texas, the National Weather Service said.

Maximum sustained winds at the time were about 80 mph, officials said. Category 1 storms generally have sustained wind speeds of 74 to 95 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Sustained wind speeds at Palacios Municipal, a coastal airport near where the storm made landfall, were at about 61 mph, officials said. Gusts at the airfield had climbed as high as 81 mph.

-ABC New’s Max Golembo

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