VIA Click2Houston.com: Tropical Storm Alex is gaining strength in the Gulf of Mexico and is expected to become a hurricane before it makes landfall in Mexico or Texas, KPRC Local 2 reported Tuesday.
At 1 p.m., the center of Tropical Storm Alex was located at 22.9 north and 93.6 west, approximately 320 miles southeast of Brownsville.
Maximum sustained winds reached 70 mph. Alex is moving northwest at 13 mph. A gradual turn toward the west-northwest is expected on Wednesday. “It’s gotten better organized overnight,” KPRC Local 2 meteorologist Anthony Yanez said.
Alex was expected to become a hurricane on Tuesday or early Wednesday and could intensify to a Category 2 hurricane.A hurricane warning has been issued for the coast of Texas south of Baffin Bay to the mouth of the Rio Grande and in Mexico from the mouth of the Rio Grande to La Cruz.
A tropical storm warning has been issued for the coast of Texas from Baffin Bay to Port O’Connor.Tropical storm-force winds extend outward up to 105 miles, according to the National Hurricane Center.”The influence with the moisture is extending all the way out into the Florida panhandle,” Yanez said.The National Hurricane Center predicted Alex will make landfall in Mexico or Texas late Wednesday or early Thursday.
The Houston area won’t take a direct, but much rain is expected. “We’re going to see those outer rain bands begin to affect us tomorrow,” Yanez said.”Very easily you could see some flooding in southeast Texas, and that’s the concern. With tropical systems, if you get training, so 3, 6, 9 to 12 inches are possible with this system.
