Hurricane Harvey lands first blow to Texas, but more is expected

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Traffic lights lie on a street after being knocked down, as Hurricane Harvey approaches in Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S. August 25, 2017. REUTERS/Adrees Latif

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Texans from the Louisiana border to the Hill Country in the middle of the state awoke to dire warnings of a major natural disaster Saturday as Hurricane Harvey charged inland, with weather officials downgrading it to a Category 1 storm but cautioning that the danger was far from over as the region braced for catastrophic flooding and potential tornadoes.

Images of downed trees, collapsed buildings and darkened streets began trickling in early in the day, after the storm roared ashore at 10 p.m. Central time Friday with 130 mph winds – the strongest hurricane to hit the United States since Wilma in 2005. But residents of a broad swath of Southeast Texas braced for further damage as weather officials warned of tornadoes, torrential downpours and potentially days of flooding, including in Houston, the nation's fourth largest city.

As of 7 a.m. Central time, the center of the storm was sitting just 20 miles to the west of the coastal town of Victoria. The slow moving storm was still packing winds of 80 miles per hour, but was expected to weaken into a tropical storm later in the day.

The National Hurricane Center is warning that though the storm is losing wind speed, its most lethal effects are still yet to come, as its cyclonic action draws moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and dumps it over the next several days, triggering "catastrophic" flooding over a quarter of the massive state.

Already in the storm's wake, reports of damage emerged early from the city of Rockport, where the hurricane made landfall. City Manager Kevin Carruth said multiple people were assessed and treated after the roof of a senior housing complex collapsed, according to the Associated Press. Carruth also said that Rockport's historic downtown area has seen extensive damage, AP reported.

President Donald Trump said in a series of tweets Saturday morning that he is closely monitoring the situation from Camp David, and that federal officials have been on the ground since before the storm hit. He urged residents to "be safe" and pledged a thorough federal response. "We are leaving nothing to chance," he wrote. "City, State and Federal Govs. working great together!"

The National Weather Service said some locations in Southeast Texas had already reported 16 inches of rain by 5 a.m. Central time and predicted total rain accumulations of 15 inches to 30 inches in many areas, and as much as 40 inches in isolated areas.

Forecasters and government officials scrambled to deal with a storm that caught them off guard this week after initially being a mere tropical depression in the western Gulf of Mexico. By Friday, they were warning of catastrophic flooding, ferocious winds and a storm surge that could reach 12 feet.

Soon after the outer bands of Harvey reached the South Texas coast Friday afternoon, Gov. Greg Abbott, R, urged citizens to evacuate low-lying and coastal areas immediately. President Trump said Friday night that he has signed a disaster proclamation in Texas after Abbott sent him a written request.

"The storm surge, coupled with the deluge of rain, could easily lead to billions of dollars of property damage and almost certainly loss of life," Abbott wrote. "It is not hyperbole to say that if the forecast verifies, Texas is about to experience one of the worst natural disasters in the history of the state."

White House aides said that Trump would visit Texas next week.

Harvey is the first natural disaster faced by the Trump administration. The president on Friday tweeted that he had spoken with the governors of Texas and Louisiana and was "here to assist as needed."

On Saturday morning, he tweeted: "Closely monitoring #HurricaneHarvey from Camp David. We are leaving nothing to chance. City, State and Federal Govs. working great together!"

Harvey could drift back out over open water, drawing fresh energy from the warm gulf waters before meandering ashore again closer to Galveston.

That scenario would deliver historic amounts of rain to the region, with some models showing accumulations in feet rather than inches. Flooding is likely in and around Houston.

"Small streams, creeks, canals, and ditches may become raging rivers. Flood control systems and barriers may become stressed," the National Weather Service said in an advisory Friday.

Jennifer Cantrell, 37, a Houston social worker who endured Hurricane Ike in 2008, was buying four 40-pound bags of topsoil on Friday to place at the foot of her door in her first-floor apartment.

"We got to worry about all the folks who moved here in the last years and haven't seen a hurricane yet," she said outside a Citgo gas station, where she had stopped to stock up on cigarettes. "You've just got to be prepared to be indoors for days with no electricity, no water."

The Texas Military Department has deployed about 700 members of the State Guard and National Guard around the coastal region. Black Hawk and Lakota helicopter crews are on standby for search and rescue.

The American Red Cross has mobilized staffers from across the country. Paul I. Carden Jr., regional disaster officer for the Red Cross's National Capital Region in Washington, said in Corpus Christi that residents are foolish if they decide not to evacuate.

After the storm, the Red Cross will be providing cleanup kits, health and mental-health professionals, and spiritual-care workers to help residents cope, he said.

"This is going to try a person's faith," Carden said.

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Grant reported from Kingsville, Texas. The Washington Post's Joel Achenbach reported from Washington; Dylan Baddour in Houston, Ashley Cusick in New Orleans, and Mark Berman, Steven Mufson, Wesley Lowery and Jason Samenow in Washington contributed to this report.