Tropical Storm — Nueces County Islands, Texas

2023-08-22 · Nueces County Islands, Texas

Event narrative

Observations indicated tropical storm force wind gusts occurred. Winds gusted as high as 47 knots (54 mph) at mesonet site on north Padre Island and 42 knots (48 mph) at Port Aransas.

Wider weather episode

Tropical Storm Harold moved west across south Texas on the 22nd. An area of low pressure developed over the central Gulf of Mexico on the 21st. A large area of high pressure over the central United States into the northern Gulf Coast steered the system quickly westward toward the Middle Texas coast. The low strengthened into Tropical Storm Harold by the early morning hours of the 22nd. Harold increased in strength and made landfall south of Baffin Bay as a 50 mph tropical storm during the late morning. Harold moved west-northwest and weakened into a tropical depression as it reached Laredo. Beneficial rains occurred over the Coastal Bend and Brush Country with the heaviest rainfall, ranging from 5 to 7 inches, from Corpus Christi to Alice to north of Freer. Flooding occurred in Corpus Christi and Laredo. Two weak tornadoes occurred south of George West and near Orange Grove. Tides ranged from 1 to 2 feet MHHW along the Middle Texas coast. Tidal flooding occurred around Corpus Christi and Nueces Bays with the highest tide level of 2.6 feet MHHW at Nueces Bay.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1133838. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.