Tropical Storm Edouard made landfall Tuesday afternoon near Johnson Bayou, Louisiana, just across the state’s border with Texas near Beaumont, according to the National Hurricane Center.
The storm made landfall around 2:20, moving at a speed of 8 miles per hour, according to the National Hurricane Center. Maximum winds are estimated to be up to 60 miles per hour.
Earlier Tuesday afternoon, Beaumont mayor Roy West preemptively signed a disaster declaration, saying one had also already been filed at the county level.
“We’re very well prepared for anything that may occur,” he said in a Facebook post. “We’re certainly praying for the best, but we are prepared for whatever may come our way.”
A tropical storm warning has been issued for parts of southeast Texas along the Gulf, including Jefferson County where Beaumont is, while Harris and Galveston Counties are under a flood watch.
The region is expected to be hit with as much as several inches of rain falling in southeast Texas. Some areas hit hardest by the storm could see isolated rainfall amounts of up to 10-15 inches, the National Weather Service forecasts.
"So that's still pretty well east of the area, but we will still be impacted by the western side of the circulation with some rain and gustier winds," Jason Dunn with the National Weather Service Houston-Galveston Office told Houston Public Media. "The axis of heaviest rain will probably be fairly narrow just because it's a small circulation."
The tropical storm warning covers Port Bolivar and areas eastward along the coast into Louisiana.
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Most areas east of I-45, including Harris and Galveston Counties, are under a flood watch from 1 a.m. Tuesday until 7 p.m. Wednesday. Parts of southeast Texas, including Houston, are at a slight risk for excessive rainfall on Tuesday and Wednesday, with surrounding areas at a marginal risk.
Current forecasting projects the storm will have a sharp cut-off between areas with little to no rainfall and areas with several inches of rainfall. The trajectory the storm takes will determine where the higher rainfall totals occur.
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"With any tropical system, you could get some gusty winds, especially near the coast and offshore,” Kyle said. “For those folks further inland, metro area and northward, we are looking more of a rainfall impact."
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 3 p.m. on Sept. 1 to include the latest information from the National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center.
Houston Public Media’s Kyle McClenagan and Matt Harab contributed to this article.