Beryl Storm Hits Texas, Hundreds Of Flights Canceled

Badai Beryl saat melanda Saint Vincent dan Grenadines Kepulauan Berkublik/DOKmen WFP/Fedel Mansour via UN News

JAKARTA - Hurricane Beryl strengthens as it approaches Texas coast. The storm has forced the closure of major oil ports, flight cancellations, and warnings of the storm to become a deadly storm for the public.

Beryl last week swept through Jamaica, Grenada, St. Vincent and Grenadines, knocked down buildings and power lines and killed 11 people.

The storm weakened after causing deadly destruction across the Caribbean, but rose to a category 1 storm while crossing the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

When it reached land near Houston, Texas, on Monday, July 8, the storm was probably a category 2 storm.

Additional strengthening is expected before the landing on the Texas coast, the US National Storm Center (NHC) said in its latest warning.

Texas Governor Patrick on Sunday, July 7, declared 120 areas to be disaster areas ahead of the storm and warned Beryl "would be a deadly storm for people who were right on the path of the disaster."

Schools will be closed as the storm approaches.

Airlines canceled hundreds of flights, and officials ordered evacuations in coastal cities.

The closure of major oil shipping ports around Corpus Christi, Galveston and Houston ahead of the storm could disrupt crude exports, shipments of crude oil to refineries, and fuel vehicles from factories.