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AccuWeather
Beryl's fury turns deadly, leaves millions in the dark across Texas
By Brian Lada,
7 days ago
The hurricane, which peaked as a Category 5 storm in the Caribbean, bombarded Texas with flooding rain, destructive winds and storm surge earlier this week, upending lives and causing billions in economic damage.
The season's first hurricane unleashed deadly force this week, ravaging Texas and Louisiana, standing people in floodwaters and plunging millions into darkness.
AccuWeather estimates the total economic loss in the United States from Beryl is between $28 and 32 billion. This figure includes direct damage from the storm, job and wage losses, interruptions of the supply chain and flight delays and cancellations.
Beryl slams into Texas, 1st U.S. landfall of 2024
Texas took the brunt of Beryl as it crashed into the state before daybreak Monday, making landfall as a Category 1 hurricane near Matagorda, Texas.
At least eight fatalities have been reported in Texas and Louisiana, several of which occurred due to falling trees. One of the deaths was Russell Richardson, a civilian member of the Houston Police Department, who was caught in rising flood waters in Houston Monday.
"This was the most widespread damaging wind in the Houston Metro, likely since Hurricane Ike in 2008, with similar wind impacts in a lot of places," AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter said.
More than 2.9 million electric customers in Texas were without power at one point Monday afternoon after Beryl made landfall. Power was slowly being restored across the state in the wake of the storm, but outages midday Wednesday were still above 1.6 million, according to PowerOutage.us.
Intense heat and humidity paired with the outages created dangerous conditions that will persist throughout the week.
“We can handle it, but not the kids,” Walter Perez told The Associated Press about the heat and humidity while at a cooling center in Houston.
Outages may last for days, which will not only be dangerous for those without access to air conditioners, but also families who are struggling with food security, as food being stored in refrigerators and freezers may spoil.
Beryl breaks out as the first major hurricane of 2024
Beryl developed over the Atlantic Ocean on Friday, June 28, one day after AccuWeather warned that the first hurricane of the 2024 hurricane season was about to take shape. It quickly intensified into a powerful hurricane before making landfall on Carriacou Island on Monday, July 1.
It quickly evolved into a powerhouse hurricane, achieving Category 5 status with winds of 165 mph as it roared across the Caribbean. Beryl gradually lost wind intensity as it brushed Jamaica before making landfall in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. At least 11 people died on its journey across the Caribbean.
Due to the long-lived nature of Beryl and the sustained intensity of the storm, Beryl generated an accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) of 35.1, according to Colorado State University.
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