TEXAS, USA — Nearly 30 East Texas counties have been added to the Hurricane Beryl disaster declaration issued by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
LIVE UPDATES --> Tracking Beryl's path toward East Texas
Patrick, who has assumed the role of acting governor during Gov. Greg Abbott's absence while on a tour in East Asia, announced Saturday that 81 counties were added to the state's Hurricane Beryl disaster declaration as storm forecasts predict landfall north and east of previous projections, bringing the total number of Texas counties included in the state's disaster declaration to 121.
The following East Texas counties were added to the disaster declaration Saturday:
- Anderson
- Angelina
- Camp
- Cass
- Cherokee
- Franklin
- Gregg
- Harrison
- Henderson
- Hopkins
- Houston
- Marion
- Morris
- Nacogdoches
- Panola
- Polk
- Rains
- Rusk
- Sabine
- San Augustine
- Shelby
- Smith
- Titus
- Trinity
- Upshur
- Van Zandt
- Wood
Other counties added to the disaster declaration on Saturday include Austin, Bastrop, Bell, Bowie, Brazoria, Brazos, Burleson, Caldwell, Camp, Cass, Chambers, Collin, Colorado, Comal, Dallas, Delta, Ellis, Falls, Fannin, Fayette, Fort Bend, Freestone, Galveston, Grayson, Grimes, Guadalupe, Hardin, Harris, Hays, Hill, Houston, Hunt, Jasper, Jefferson, Kaufman, Lamar, Lee, Leon, Liberty, Limestone, Madison, Marion, McLennan, Milam, Montgomery, Morris, Navarro, Newton, Orange, Rains, Red River, Robertson, Rockwall, San Jacinto, Shelby, Travis, Tyler, Walker, Waller, Washington, and Williamson counties.
Previously included in the declaration are Aransas, Atascosa, Bee, Bexar, Brooks, Calhoun, Cameron, DeWitt, Dimmit, Duval, Frio, Goliad, Gonzales, Hidalgo, Jackson, Jim Hogg, Jim Wells, Karnes, Kenedy, Kinney, Kleberg, LaSalle, Lavaca, Live Oak, Matagorda, Maverick, McMullen, Medina, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Starr, Uvalde, Victoria, Webb, Wharton, Willacy, Wilson, Zapata, and Zavala.
Tropical Storm Beryl is expected to intensify as it moves northwest through the Gulf of Mexico before making landfall along the mid-Texas coast as a hurricane on Monday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
“As Hurricane Beryl approaches the Gulf Coast, today and tomorrow will be the last 2 days for Texans to make preparations for the coming storm," Patrick said. "Beryl is a determined storm, and incoming winds and potential flooding will pose a serious threat to Texans who are in Beryl’s path at landfall and as it makes its way across the state for the following 24 hours."
