HOUSTON (AP) — Hurricane Hanna rumbled toward the Texas Gulf Coast on Saturday, lashing the shoreline with wind gusts, rain and storm surge, and even threatening to bring possible tornadoes to a part of the country trying to cope with a spike in coronavirus cases.
The storm, which is the first hurricane of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, was expected to make landfall late Saturday afternoon or early evening south of Corpus Christi, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. As of late Saturday morning, it had maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (129 kph) and was centered about 85 miles (137 kilometers) southeast of Corpus Christi and was moving west at 7 mph (11 kph).
Many parts of Texas, including the area where Hanna was expected to come ashore, have been dealing with a surge in coronavirus cases in recent weeks, but local officials said they were prepared for whatever the storm may bring.
Corpus Christi Mayor Joe McComb said Saturday that he had seen some residents doing last-minute shopping for supplies, but he warned that if that hadn’t been done already, people should stay at home and ride out the storm.