Hurricane Beryl causes wave of flight cancellations in Houston

July 8 (UPI) -- More than 1,000 flights have been canceled into and out of Houston's two major airports as Hurricane Beryl slams south Texas with torrid winds, heavy rain and flash flooding.

According to the flight tracking website FlightAware.com , 80% of the flights out of Bush Intercontinental Airport, totaling 525 flights, were canceled on Monday morning and another 123 flights -- 60% of all outgoing trips -- out of William P. Hobby Airport.

Flightaware said 448 flights originally scheduled to flights into Bush were canceled, making up 66% of the airport's incoming flights, while 103 incoming fights into Hobby -- 49% -- were canceled.

The City of Houston's Department of Aviation urged travelers to stay home on Monday and not drive to the airport.

"As the storm approaches and people plan to stay indoors and safe from the storm, we want to remind everyone that our airports are not equipped to serve as storm shelters," the department said on X . "We lack the supplies and staff to accommodate people seeking refuge during the storm."

Beryl turned more northeast with its eye moving through south Texas Monday with maximum winds of 75 mph with higher gusts. Beryl, while weakening, was not expected to be downgraded to a tropical storm until later Monday and into a tropical depression by Tuesday.

Forecasters predicted rainfall of up to six inches in Houston, which will result in flash flooding around the sprawling city and near its two airports. Meteorologists said winds of 92 mph have been recorded Monday southwest of Houst in Freeport and Matagorda.

Shipping traffic was either restricted or closed ahead of Beryl's arrival, including ports in Corpus Christi, Houston, Galveston, Freeport and Texas City.

Storm surge is expected to lift sea levels up to seven feet in Port O'Connor to San Luis Pass, six feet in Sabine Pass and Galveston Bay, and five feet in High Island, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The National Hurricane Center said the fast-moving storm is expected to move into the Lower Mississippi Valley on Tuesday and then the Ohio Valley by Wednesday.

While wind speeds are expected to drop significantly throughout Monday, the storm is expected to continue to dump substantial rain over its affected areas. Beryl is predicted to dump up to 15 inches of rain across some areas of the middle to upper Texas Coast.

The storm will cause noticeable rainfall as far away as northeastern Oklahoma, Arkansas and southern Missouri by Monday night and into Tuesday.

The storm has also spurred tornado warnings on Monday for some locations along the upper Texas coast, Louisiana and Arkansas.