Hurricane (Typhoon) — Coastal Kleberg County, Texas

2020-07-25 · Coastal Kleberg County, Texas

Event narrative

TCOON site at Baffin Bay along with radar data showed hurricane force gusts occurred in the afternoon.

Wider weather episode

Hurricane Hanna was the first hurricane of the 2020 Atlantic Basin hurricane season and made landfall on the lower Texas coast north of Port Mansfield on the afternoon of the 25th. Hanna was the first hurricane to make landfall in Texas since Hurricane Harvey.

Hanna began as a tropical wave, first noted for possible development when it was near Hispaniola on the 19th. The tropical wave moved northwest across Cuba into the central Gulf of Mexico where it became a tropical depression on the morning of the 22nd. Tropical Storm Hanna formed late in the evening on the 23rd as it moved west-northwest over the central Gulf of Mexico. Hanna continued to strengthen and became a hurricane on the morning of the 25th around 100 miles east of the Middle Texas coast. Hurricane Hanna turned to the southwest and made landfall over Kenedy County, between Baffin Bay and Port Mansfield, late in the afternoon on the 25th with a peak intensity of 90 mph and a central pressure of 973 millibars.

Tropical storm force winds occurred along the Middle Texas coast into the eastern portions of the Brush Country from the afternoon of the 25th until the early morning hours of the 26th. Hurricane force gusts occurred over the coastal portion of Kleberg County during the afternoon of the 25th.

Storm surge from Hanna affected the entire Middle Texas coast from the 25th until the 26th. Storm surge ranged from 1 to 3 feet above ground level for the coastal areas of Aransas, Calhoun, and Refugio Counties. Storm surge ranged from 2.5 to 4.5 feet above ground level for coastal areas of San Patricio, Nueces, and Kleberg Counties.

The highest surge was at Bob Hall Pier with a reading of 5.48 feet mean higher high water. Storm surge damaged numerous piers and docks in Nueces and Corpus Christi Bays south to Baffin Bay. Storm surge damaged navigation markers in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel. Some parts of the Corpus Christi marina were damaged. Bob Hall Pier sustained significant damage with the t-head parts of the pier being destroyed. Damage from Hurricane Hanna was estimated to be around 54 million dollars.

Minor wind damage occurred across the Coastal Bend as tropical storm force winds caused power outages and minor tree damage. There were three tornadoes over the Coastal Bend associated with the outer bands of Hurricane Hanna. The three tornadoes were weak (EF0). The tornadoes affected the communities of Bonnie View, Pernitas Point, and Lagarto.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 912707. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.