ALERT: Tornado watch in effect for Baltimore, Washington, DC, and points south. Get the latest. Chevron right
ICYMI: The 2022 hurricane season special aired on the AccuWeather TV network. Watch it here. Chevron right

Ashburn, VA

66° F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Ashburn

Virginia

66°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Ashburn, VA Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

Video

Podcasts

Winter Center

News & Features AccuWeather Prime Astronomy Business Climate Health Recreation Sports Travel
Areal Flood Watch

News / Hurricane

Beta to unleash days of flooding rainfall, pounding surf from Texas to Louisiana

By Renee Duff, AccuWeather meteorologist

Published Sep. 20, 2020 11:11 AM EDT

Copied

Both states have already been impacted by several tropical system this year, and Beta will be the next to cause disruptions.

Beta became the ninth named storm to make landfall in the United States on Monday night, after coming ashore along the Texas coast near the southern end of the Matagorda Peninsula, close to Port O'Connor, with maximum sustained winds of 45 mph. Well ahead of landfall, the storm's wrath was felt along the storm-battered Gulf Coast over the weekend.

Beta has weakened to a tropical depression as of 10 a.m. CDT Tuesday. Further weakening to a tropical rainstorm is anticipated in the coming days, but torrential rainfall and flooding will continue along a portion of its slow-moving path.

Communities that were devastated by Hurricane Laura, and to some extent more recently by Hurricane Sally, could face strong winds and downpours that could hinder ongoing recovery efforts. AccuWeather forecasters have rated Beta a 1 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes.  

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 29 counties in Texas on Monday as Beta churned toward the coast.

On Sunday evening, pummeling waves generated by the storm destroyed part of the 61st Street Pier in Galveston, Texas, a coastal town south and east of Houston. Webcam footage captured workers trying to save as much of the pier as possible as waves battered the structure. Part of the fishing pier was found several miles away on Monday morning, KHOU 11 reported. 

Heavy rainfall from Beta is seen dousing the Texas coastline as the tropical storm makes landfall on Monday night. (AccuWeather)

Even as far away as Louisiana, the storm was churning up rough surf and causing flooding over the weekend. Lakeshore Drive in New Orleans was closed on Sunday as water levels climbed on Lake Pontchartrain. Video showed the choppy waters on the lake, even as the storm swirled off of Texas over the western Gulf of Mexico. Coastal flooding continued on Monday with some roads inundated and impassible. Flash flood watches were in effect in the city in advance of the storm’s excessive rainfall.  

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency ahead of the tropical storm on Monday, opening up state resources to aid in local government response. He warned that the storm's slow movement puts the southwestern part of the state at risk for flooding through at least the middle of the week.

Numerous watches and warnings remain in effect along the coasts of Louisiana and Texas, due to the potential for storm-surge flooding, heavy rainfall and tropical-storm-force winds.

Forecasters and officials are urging residents to not focus on Beta's intensity, and rather on the days of heavy rainfall and flooding that it is likely to unleash, even well away from the center of the storm.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

Widespread rainfall totals of 4-8 inches are expected across southeastern Texas and into southern Louisiana. Higher rainfall totals on the order of 8-16 inches with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 24 inches are expected to occur along the Texas and Louisiana coasts.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called on Texans to remain vigilant and heed all advice of local officials on Sunday. "The State of Texas is prepared to support communities in the path of the storm, where substantial amounts of rainfall and flash flooding are a significant threat.We will continue to closely monitor the storm and work collaboratively with officials to ensure our fellow Texans are safe,” he said.

Heavy rainfall and the risk for flash flooding are likely even if the storm wobbles back over the water and lingers just offshore of the Texas coast as currently forecast.

"This rainfall can lead to significant, life-threatening flooding, which may last for several days," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Rob Miller said.

Primarily due to the flood threat, Beta will be a 1 for the United States on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes. The RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes is a 6-point scale with ratings of less than 1 and 1 to 5 that was introduced by AccuWeather in 2019 to rate tropical systems based on multiple impacts, rather than just wind, like the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale does.

Even though Beta is not nearly as strong as Hurricane Harvey, which exploded into a Category 4 storm in 2017, it is expected to crawl across the region, and forecasters warn that it will have enough fuel to produce torrential rainfall along its path. In 2017, Harvey unloaded up to 61 inches of rain as it spent days spinning over eastern Texas.

Back in 2001, Allison, as a tropical storm, unleashed disastrous flooding across southeastern Texas, due to its slow movement.

Should the storm stall near the Texas coast, rainfall amounts could be higher and may even exceed 24 inches. Conversely, should Beta move along at a quicker pace or more drier air get pulled into the storm, total rainfall amounts could be cut in half for some locations, though flooding would still remain a threat.

Beta will continue to create a minor to moderate storm surge along the western and central Gulf coast, as well as rough seas, pounding surf and dangerous rip currents over the Gulf of Mexico.

"Tropical Storm Beta is a reminder that hurricane season is still in full swing," Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said in a media release on Friday. "Now is the time to prepare. Stock your emergency kit, refill prescriptions and monitor Houston OEM's channels for official updates.”

Waterspouts and isolated tornadoes can occur in Beta's outer bands to the northeast of the center of the storm.

An area of 40- to 50-mph wind gusts will extend along the Texas and southwestern Louisiana coasts. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 55 mph is expected closest to where Beta made landfall.

"As high pressure to the north weakens and another upper-level disturbance approaches from the northwest, Beta should take a more northerly [to northeasterly] course during the middle and latter part of the week," Miller said.

Depending on the exact track of Beta, drenching downpours could reach the Southeast later in the week, including areas recently impacted by Hurricane Sally.

Weak steering winds have resulted in Beta meandering over the Gulf of Mexico since last week.

Forecasters had been monitoring the disturbance for over a week before it developed into Tropical Depression 22 on Thursday, Sept. 17. By Friday evening, the system strengthened into Tropical Storm Beta, writing a new page in the record books for becoming the earliest 23rd-named tropical storm in the Atlantic, replacing Alpha from 2005, which formed on Oct. 22 and was the first-ever storm to be named a Greek letter.

The tropical storm claimed the second letter in the Greek alphabet on Friday afternoon, following Wilfred and Alpha. Once the last name on the Atlantic hurricane season's designated list is exhausted, Greek letters are used to identify tropical storms.

Prior to Beta, eight storms had made landfall in the U.S. during the hyperactive 2020 hurricane season. In comparison, 3 to 4 storms typically strike the country during an entire hurricane season. 

With months still left in the Atlantic hurricane season, more Greek letters are likely to be used. Last week, AccuWeather meteorologists upped their 2020 season predictions for the number of total storms to 28, which would tie the record number of named storms in the basin set in the notorious 2005 season.

Related:

Man rides out Hurricane Sally in RV
AccuWeather meteorologists increase forecast for record-breaking 2020 hurricane season
LIVE: Tropical Storm Beta lurks over Gulf, stirs up rough waters along coast
Hurricane Teddy to bear down on Canada after brushing Bermuda

Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.

Report a Typo
Comments that don't add to the conversation may be automatically or manually removed by Facebook or AccuWeather. Profanity, personal attacks, and spam will not be tolerated.
Comments
Hide Comments

Weather News

Hurricane

Watch the AccuWeather TV network's 2022 hurricane season special

May 26, 2022
Severe Weather

Severe weather to rumble over northern Plains into Memorial Day

May 27, 2022
Hurricane

1st named storm of season brewing south of Mexico

May 27, 2022
Weather News

Tiny kitten rescued from behind lines of state's worst-ever wildfire

May 26, 2022
Weather News

NASA satellite captures images of 'Sharkcano' eruption

May 25, 2022
Severe Weather

Deadly derecho hit half of Canada's population, spawned EF2 tornado

May 25, 2022
Weather News

Jumping worms, the evil twin of earthworms, showing up in California

May 24, 2022
Weather Forecasts

'Atmospheric teeter-totter' to bring big changes to central US

May 27, 2022
Weather Forecasts

AccuWeather's 2022 Canada summer forecast

May 24, 2022
video

Telling the story of Chinese railroad workers and the hardship they fa...

May 26, 2022
Health

Monkeypox fast facts: What you need to know

May 23, 2022
Recreation

16 spring essentials that you shouldn't do without

Feb. 4, 2021
Health

Collars and chewables to keep your pup free of ticks and fleas

Apr. 28, 2022
Recreation

Coolers that'll help you beat the extreme summer heat

May 19, 2022
Show More Show Less Chevron down

Topics

News & Features

AccuWeather Prime

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

Top Stories

Severe Weather

DC and Baltimore under tornado watch until 2 p.m. on Friday

0 minutes ago

Weather Forecasts

Memorial Day weekend to start wet and dreary, but then hello, sunshine...

55 minutes ago

Astronomy

Planets to converge during pre-dawn phenomenon

1 day ago

Tornado leaves devastating path of damage

5 days ago 0:53

Podcast: Wildfires, droughts, energy shortages: a long hot summer ahea...

More Stories

Featured Topic

Local Arthritis Forecast

Featured Stories

World War II vet recalls how weather impacted D-Day 78 years ago Comfy mattresses you can pick up on sale this Memorial Day Top picks for outdoor furniture from the Memorial Day sales
AccuWeather Hurricane Beta to unleash days of flooding rainfall, pounding surf from Texas to Louisiana
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs Podcast RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Shop AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Weather Blogs Winter Weather
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs Podcast RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Shop AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Weather Blogs Winter Weather
© 2021 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | TAG Disclosure | Do Not Sell My Data checkmark Confirmed Not Selling Your Data

We have updated our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy.

I Understand

Get AccuWeather alerts as they happen with our browser notifications.

Notifications Enabled

Thanks! We’ll keep you informed.

FEEDBACK