000 WTUS84 KHGX 151922 CCA HLSHOU TXZ200-213-214-235>238-152200- HURRICANE LOCAL STATEMENT...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 215 PM CDT TUE JUL 15 2003 ...HURRICANE CLAUDETTE MOVING QUICKLY INLAND TOWARD SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS... ...THIS STATEMENT APPLIES TO THE RESIDENTS OF... BRAZORIA...CHAMBERS...GALVESTON...HARRIS...JACKSON...LIBERTY...AND MATAGORDA COUNTIES... ...WATCHES/WARNINGS IN EFFECT... HURRICANE WARNING: FROM BAFFIN BAY TO HIGH ISLAND...INCLUDING GALVESTON AND MATAGORDA BAYS AND THE HOUSTON/GALVESTON METRO AREA. INLAND TROPICAL STORM WIND WARNING FOR WHARTON COUNTY UNTIL 5 PM. FLOOD WATCH: FOR AREAS SOUTH OF I-10 THIS AFTERNOON. TORNADO WATCH: THROUGH 7 PM FOR THE SOUTHERN HALF OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS. ...CURRENT STORM INFORMATION... .LOCATION... AT 2 PM CDT...THE CENTER OF HURRICANE CLAUDETTE WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 28.6 NORTH...LONGITUDE 97.1 WEST. THIS IS ABOUT 20 MILES SOUTH SOUTHWEST OF VICTORIA TEXAS. .MOVEMENT... CLAUDETTE IS MOVING WEST NORTHWEST AT 14 MPH. CLAUDETTE HAS MADE LANDFALL AND WILL BE MOVING INTO SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS BY EARLY EVENING. .WINDS... MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 75 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS. CLAUDETTE WILL WEAKEN OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS AS IT MOVES INLAND. ...PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... RESIDENTS SHOULD HAVE COMPLETED ALL PREPAREDNESS PLANS AT THIS TIME. ...STORM SURGE AND TIDES... TIDES ARE SUBSIDING ALONG THE UPPER TEXAS COAST. CURRENT TIDE LEVELS ARE 5 TO 6 FEET FROM MATAGORDA BAY TO FREEPORT...4 TO 5 FEET ALONG THE WESTERN SHORE OF GALVESTON BAY...AND 3 TO 4 FEET FROM GALVESTON ISLAND EASTWARD TO HIGH ISLAND. LOCATION EXPECTED WATER LEVELS AT HIGH TIDE (RELATIVE TO MEAN LOWER LOW WATER) CLEAR LAKE TUE 2:19 PM 4.5 FT. WED 2:50 PM 2.2 FT. EAGLE POINT WED 12:39 PM 2.2 FT. FREEPORT TUE 3:06 PM 5.0 FT. GALVESTON CHANNEL TUE 3:50 PM 3.8 FT. JAMAICA BEACH TUE 6:28 PM 3.4 FT. MORGANS POINT TUE 6:35 PM 4.5 FT. PLEASURE PIER TUE 3:05 PM 3.5 FT. PORT BOLIVAR TUE 4:04 PM 4.3 FT. PORT OCONNOR TUE 2:59 PM 2.5 FT. SAN LUIS PASS TUE 3:41 PM 3.5 FT. ...WIND IMPACTS... WINDS ARE DIMINISHING ALONG THE UPPER TEXAS COAST. AT 2 PM...WINDS WERE RUNNING 15 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 35 MPH MAINLY NEAR THE COAST. WIND GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH ARE STILL POSSIBLE OVER WHARTON AND JACKSON COUNTIES THROUGH ABOUT 4 PM. ...RAINFALL... RAINBANDS FROM CLAUDETTE WILL CONTINUE TO AFFECT SOUTHEAST TEXAS. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE OVER WHARTON...JACKSON...MATAGORDA AND BRAZORIA COUNTIES. FLOODING PROBLEMS WILL CONTINUE IN THESE COUNTIES FOR SEVERAL MORE HOURS. ELSEWHERE...ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS WILL AVERAGE 1/2 TO 1 INCH. ...TORNADOES... THE THREAT FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE SOUTHERN HALF OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON. ...FLOODING... COASTAL FLOODING CONTINUES FROM MATAGORDA UP THE COAST TO FREEPORT...GALVESTON...AND THE BOLIVAR PENINSULA. WATER IS COVERING NUMEROUS ROADS IN GALVESTON WITH FM 3005 BLOCKED OFF NEAR THE 8 MILE ROAD AND HARBORSIDE DRIVE BETWEEN 14TH AND 16TH STREET. WATER IS ALSO COVERING PORTIONS OF HIGHWAY 87 ON THE BOLIVAR PENINSULA. 61ST STREET AT I-45 WERE ALSO FLOODED EARLY THIS MORNING. THE BOLIVAR FERRY IS CLOSED. HOMES ARE FLOODED IN SMITH POINT...OAK ISLAND...AND WHITE HERON IN CHAMBERS COUNTY. LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTS 5 TO 6 FOOT FLOOD WATERS IN QUINTANA AND SURFSIDE WITH WATER INTO HOMES. STATE HIGHWAY 332 HAS BEEN CLOSED TO INCOMING TRAFFIC IN SURFSIDE. AT LEAST ONE HOME HAS COLLAPSED IN SURFSIDE WITH PEOPLE POSSIBLY TRAPPED INSIDE. CLEAR CREEK HAS RISEN ABOVE BANKS IN LEAGUE CITY WITH WATER OVER STATE HIGHWAY 270. HIGH TIDES HAVE FLOODING HOMES AND BUSINESSES IN KEMAH AND SEABROOK WITH NUMEROUS VEHICLES FLOODED OUT. ...DAMAGE... SEVERAL HOMES HAVE BEEN FLOODED IN SURFSIDE WITH FIRES DESTROYING SEVERAL OTHERS. LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTS ROOFS BLOWN OFF HOMES IN MATAGORDA AND SARGENT. NUMEROUS TREES AND POWER LINES HAVE BEEN BLOWN DOWN EVEN OVER INLAND AREAS AS FAR NORTH AS HOUSTON AND EL CAMPO. JACKSON COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT REPORTS NUMEROUS TREES DOWN ACROSS THE COUNTY WITH WINDOWS BLOWN OUT OF MANY HOMES. LOLITA WAS THE HARDEST HIT AREA. MATAGORDA COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT REPORTS EXTENSIVE WIND DAMAGE ACROSS THE COUNTY WITH MANY ROADS BLOCKED BY DEBRIS. ...NEXT UPDATE... THE NEXT LOCAL STATEMENT ON CLAUDETTE WILL BE ISSUED BETWEEN 4 AND 5 PM. FOR MORE HURRICANE INFORMATION...SEE THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER WEB PAGE AT HTTP://WWW.NHC.NOAA.GOV OR THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE'S WEB PAGE IN HOUSTON/GALVESTON AT HTTP://WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/HGX. $$