000 WTUS84 KHGX 152059 HLSHOU TXZ200-213-214-235>238-160200- TROPICAL STORM LOCAL STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 400 PM CDT TUE JUL 15 2003 ...TROPICAL STORM CLAUDETTE MOVING QUICKLY AWAY FROM SOUTHEAST TEXAS... ...HURRICANE WARNINGS HAVE BEEN DISCONTINUED... ...THIS STATEMENT APPLIES TO THE RESIDENTS OF... BRAZORIA...CHAMBERS...GALVESTON...HARRIS...JACKSON...LIBERTY...AND MATAGORDA COUNTIES... ...WATCHES/WARNINGS IN EFFECT... THE HURRICANE WARNING HAS BEEN DOWNGRADED TO A TROPICAL STORM WARNING FROM PORT ARANSAS TO FREEPORT. ALL WARNINGS EAST OF FREEPORT HAVE BEEN DISCONTINUED. ALL OTHER WATCHES AND WARNINGS FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS HAVE BEEN CANCELLED. ...CURRENT STORM INFORMATION... .LOCATION... AT 4 PM CDT...THE CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM CLAUDETTE WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 28.7 NORTH...LONGITUDE 97.5 WEST. THIS IS ABOUT 40 MILES WEST OF VICTORIA TEXAS. .MOVEMENT... CLAUDETTE IS MOVING WEST NORTHWEST AT 14 MPH. CLAUDETTE WILL MOVE QUICKLY AWAY FROM SOUTHEAST TEXAS TONIGHT. .WINDS... MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 70 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS. CLAUDETTE WILL WEAKEN FURTHER TONIGHT AS IT MOVES INLAND. ...STORM SURGE AND TIDES... TIDES ARE SUBSIDING ALONG THE UPPER TEXAS COAST. CURRENT TIDE LEVELS ARE 4 TO 6 FEET FROM MATAGORDA BAY TO FREEPORT...AND ALONG THE WESTERN SHORE OF GALVESTON BAY. TIDE LEVELS HAVE DROPPED TO 2.5 TO 3.5 FEET FROM GALVESTON ISLAND EASTWARD TO HIGH ISLAND. TIDE LEVELS WILL DROP TO THE 2 TO 3 FOOT RANGE ALONG THE UPPER TEXAS COAST BY EARLY WEDNESDAY. LOCATION EXPECTED WATER LEVELS AT HIGH TIDE (RELATIVE TO MEAN LOWER LOW WATER) CLEAR LAKE WED 2:50 PM 2.2 FT. EAGLE POINT WED 12:39 PM 2.2 FT. FREEPORT WED 8:01 AM 3.3 FT. GALVESTON CHANNEL WED 8:45 AM 2.4 FT. JAMAICA BEACH WED 11:23 AM 2.0 FT. MORGANS POINT TUE 6:35 PM 4.5 FT. WED 7:06 PM 2.0 FT. PLEASURE PIER WED 7:37 AM 2.7 FT. PORT BOLIVAR TUE 4:04 PM 4.3 FT. WED 8:59 AM 2.4 FT. SAN LUIS PASS WED 8:36 AM 2.2 FT. ...WIND IMPACTS... WINDS ARE RUNNING 15 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS OF 30 TO 35 MPH ACROSS THE COASTAL COUNTIES AND COASTAL WATERS. THESE WINDS WILL GRADUALLY DIMINISH THIS EVENING. ...RAINFALL... SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ASSOCIATED WITH CLAUDETTE WILL PERSIST ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS THROUGH THE EVENING. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS WILL AVERAGE 1 TO 2 INCHES MAINLY OVER BRAZORIA...WHARTON...JACKSON...AND MATAGORDA COUNTIES. ISOLATED HIGHER TOTALS ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. MINOR FLOODING OF STREETS...FEEDER ROADS...OR LOW LYING AREAS IS STILL POSSIBLE. ...FLOODING... CHAMBERS COUNTY...FLOODING EARLIER REPORTED AT SMITH POINT...OAK ISLAND...AND WHITE HERON IS IMPROVING AND ALL MAJOR ROADS ARE OPEN AT THIS TIME. GALVESTON/HARRIS COUNTIES...ALL MAJOR ROADS ARE OPEN AT THIS TIME. MINOR STREET FLOODING CONTINUES ON THE WEST END OF GALVESTON ISLAND. HIGH WATER CONTINUES IN KEMAH AND SEABROOK AND ALONG THE WESTERN SHORE OF GALVESTON BAY WITH HOMES AND BUSINESSES FLOODED AND NUMEROUS VEHICLES STRANDED. THESE FLOOD WATERS WILL RECEDE THIS EVENING. BRAZORIA COUNTY...ALL MAJOR ROADS ARE OPEN AT THIS TIME. MATAGORDA COUNTY...THE DRAW BRIDGES CONNECTING THE MAINLAND TO THE BARRIER ISLANDS AT SARGENT AND MATAGORDA ARE CLOSED. MINOR STREET FLOODING CONTINUES IN SARGENT. JACKSON COUNTY...ALL MAJOR ROADS ARE OPEN AT THIS TIME. ...DAMAGE... 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 TROPICAL STORM LOCAL STATEMENT ON CLAUDETTE WILL BE ISSUED BETWEEN 6 AND 8 PM TONIGHT. FOR MORE TROPICAL WEATHER 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. $$