Hurricane Harvey is getting ready to touch down in Texas prompting Governer Greg Abbott to active 700 members of the state National Guard. The state has taken extreme measures to prepare for the storm including mandatory evacuations. Military helicopters and search and rescue crews are on standby as the storm gains momentum. The head of the National Weather service describes Hurricane Harvey as "a grave risk to the folks in Texas." Louis Uccellini, director of the National Weather Service, told reporters on Thursday that the storm is expected to be "at least a category 3" with winds at least as high as 111 mph.
<img src="https://media.8ch.net/file_store/fa6652e2531792e37acef194bc3cf83e55fcef3eddbe220eb0927027bf19f7df.jpg" style="max-height:640px;max-width:360px;">
<span style="margin-top:15px;rgba(42,51,6,0.7);font-size:12px;">Credit: David J. Phillip/AP</span>
Grocery stores in Texas have been wiped out of inventories and any last minute shoppers are faced with empty shelves as Texans stock up on supplies. The National Hurricane Center tweeted an image of the tropical storm taken by satellites. They warn that Harvey has already reached wind speeds of 85 mph and is on track to become a category 3 storm as predicted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Hurricane?src=hash">#Hurricane</a> Harvey with 85 mph winds as of 7 PM CDT, still expected to become CAT 3 major hurricane before landfall along TX coast early Sat. <a href="https://t.co/bPu0HiWWfM">pic.twitter.com/bPu0HiWWfM</a></p>— NHC Atlantic Ops (@NHC_Atlantic) <a href="https://twitter.com/NHC_Atlantic/status/900871560717897729">August 25, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Even President Donald Trump is working to prepare for relief efforts ahead of the storm. Harvey is expected to bring life-threatening and devastating flooding to the state of Texas and some places are slated to receive up to 3 feet of water. Near the coast, a storm surge of 6 to 10 feet is expected and prompted Calhoun County officials to order the evacuation of 22,000 residents of coastal areas.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">As <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HurricaneHarvey?src=hash">#HurricaneHarvey</a> intensifies - remember to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PlanAhead?src=hash">#PlanAhead</a>. <br>☑️<a href="https://t.co/FMdmvohypy">https://t.co/FMdmvohypy</a><br>☑️<a href="https://t.co/YL56ldeqoW">https://t.co/YL56ldeqoW</a> <br>☑️<a href="https://t.co/t1s4AL3B47">https://t.co/t1s4AL3B47</a> <a href="https://t.co/tpXmOK70ug">pic.twitter.com/tpXmOK70ug</a></p>— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/900802642779267077">August 24, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Harvey will be the first hurricane to hit Texas since 2008 when powerful tropical cyclone Hurricane Ike ravaged the state. Hurricane Ike left damages of $22 billion in Texas and the state is determined to be fully prepared for Harvey. The Texas General Land Office has even put out a guide specifically for Hurricane Harvey to help people stay safe during the upcoming storm.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">This is how you prepare for a hurricane. <a href="https://t.co/9m0isueyNB">https://t.co/9m0isueyNB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OurCoast?src=hash">#OurCoast</a> <a href="https://t.co/GoV6NpcPpm">pic.twitter.com/GoV6NpcPpm</a></p>— TXGeneralLandOffice (@txglo) <a href="https://twitter.com/txglo/status/900789816538800128">August 24, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Source: http://www.weau.com/content/news/Hurricane-warning-issued-for-Texas-Gulf-coast-441607613.html
