Edouard moves inland across Texas, spreading flooding rain
Edouard is tracking across northeastern Texas, producing heavy rain and raising the risk of flooding into midweek.
Tropical Storm Edouard swept through Beaumont, Texas, on Sept. 1, bringing down trees, billboards and power lines. Storm chaser Aaron Rigsby reported winds in excess of 70 mph that caused power outages.
With Edouard pressing inland over northeastern Texas, torrential downpours may do more than ease drought conditions. Too much rain may fall on some communities, leading to flash flooding.
Edouard strengthened a bit on Tuesday morning and made landfall as a 60-mph tropical storm just east of the mouth of the Sabine River in the southwestern corner of Louisiana during Tuesday afternoon. Spiral bands containing torrential rain and strong wind gusts extended from the upper Texas coast to southwestern Louisiana.
Edouard will continue to lose wind intensity and will return to tropical rainstorm status on Wednesday. The storm, which AccuWeather meteorologists dubbed a tropical rainstorm Sunday afternoon to raise public awareness, will continue to bring downpours into Wednesday night as it tracks over northeastern Texas.
Due to the increased risk of flooding rain, Edouard is a 1 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes for the United States.
Unlike the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, which accounts for wind speed only, the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes considers a broader range of factors, including wind speed, flooding rain, storm surge and economic damage and loss.
This will be the third time this season that this region of the Gulf Coast has had direct tropical impacts, following Tropical Storm Arthur in June and Tropical Storm Bertha in July.
A broad area of 1-4 inches of rainfall was in progress along the Louisiana coast and into eastern Texas from Sunday night to Wednesday. A corridor of heavier rainfall with totals of 4-8 inches is expected northeast of Houston and the upper Texas coast. A smaller area of 8-12 inches is expected in a narrow stripe near Beaumont and Port Arthur, Texas.
Thunderstorms repeatedly tracking over the same communities may produce locally higher amounts. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ is 27 inches through Thursday morning.
Even where low total rainfall occurs, brief bursts of heavy rain may overwhelm storm drains and create ponding on streets and in low-lying areas. Motorists should prepare for reduced visibility, flooded roads and possible travel delays in the heaviest rainbands.
Despite the likelihood of flash flooding near the storm's core, any non-flooding rainfall will be beneficial for much of the region, due to abnormally dry to drought conditions.
As the storm continues to move inland over southeastern Texas, it will quickly lose wind intensity and organization on Thursday. However, downpours may continue to cause localized flooding.
Since Edouard will track almost head-on into a building area of high pressure associated with a heat dome, its rain will tend to diminish over the northeastern and north-central parts of Texas beyond midweek.
More tropical moisture will flow into the Gulf throughout the week, feeding additional showers and thunderstorms. This flow of tropical moisture will keep localized flooding concerns in place from Houston and New Orleans eastward through Tampa and Orlando, Florida.
Farther east, AccuWeather hurricane experts have identified a low risk of tropical development from the eastern Gulf across the Florida Peninsula to the southwestern Atlantic waters from Sept. 6-9.
Regardless of whether tropical development occurs, the continued flow of tropical moisture could bring additional heavy showers and thunderstorms to the Gulf Coast states.
Want next-level safety, ad-free? Unlock advanced, hyperlocal severe weather alerts when you subscribe to Premium+ on the AccuWeather app. AccuWeather Alerts™ are prompted by our expert meteorologists who monitor and analyze dangerous weather risks 24/7 to keep you and your family safer.
Report a Typo
