Hanna, the first hurricane of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, rumbled toward the Texas coast Saturday for an expected early evening landfall south of Corpus Christi.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Douglas in the Pacific threatened heavy rain and hurricane-strength winds in Hawaii starting Sunday while a weakening Tropical Storm Gonzalo was expected to dissipate in the Caribbean by Monday.
While 2020 has been crushing records for earliest named storms in the Atlantic – including Cristobal, Edouard, Fay, Gonzalo, and now Hanna – hurricane experts note that the storms so far have been weak and short-lived.
But the peak of hurricane season is still weeks away, and long-range forecasts for the rest of the year indicate an active season is likely. In fact, forecasters from the federal government predicted that up to 19 named storms would form, of which six to 10 would be hurricanes.
USA TODAY hurricane tracker: Track all of the current tropical storms and hurricanes
Here's a look at each storm and what to know this weekend:
Hanna becomes first hurricane of 2020 season
Tropical Storm Hanna morphed into Hurricane Hanna on Saturday bringing the threat of a dangerous storm surge before weakening quickly inland, forecasters said. It is forecast to reach land at 2 p.m. local time as a Category 1 hurricane.
A hurricane warning was in effect from Port Mansfield to Mesquite Bay, Texas.
As of 2 p.m. EST Saturday, the center of Hanna was located about 70 miles southeast of Corpus Christi, Texas, the hurricane center said. It had maximum sustained winds around 80 mph and was moving west at 8 mph.The forecasters said some "slight strengthening" was still possible before Hanna makes landfall.
Local officials already battling the growing coronavirus threat in the state say they are prepared for whatever the storm may deliver.
“And don’t feel like since we’ve been fighting COVID for five months, that we’re out of energy or we’re out of gas. We’re not,” Corpus Christi Mayor Joe McComb said Friday. “We can do these two things together and we’re going to win both of them.”
Hanna is expected to produce 6 to 12 inches of rain with isolated maximum totals of 18 inches through Sunday night in south Texas, the National Hurricane Center said.
"This rain may result in life-threatening flash flooding, rapid rises on small streams, and isolated minor to moderate river flooding," the NHC warned.
Gov. Greg Abbott said Friday that the state "will coordinate with local officials to provide assistance and resources to communities in the area." He urged those in the path "to heed the warnings and guidance from local officials."
Hanna broke the record as the earliest eighth Atlantic named storm; The previous record was Harvey on Aug. 3, 2005, Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach tweeted.
Hawaii braces for Hurricane Douglas
Though still hundreds of miles from Hawaii, the state was bracing for the arrival of Hurricane Douglas, which was expected to move across the island chain on Sunday.
Hawaii Gov. David Ige issued a state of emergency as the storm approached.
At 11 a.m. EST Saturday, Hurricane Douglas was 440 miles east of Hilo and packing maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. It’s expected to weaken as it passes over cooler water but meteorologists warn that strong winds, heavy rainfall and dangerous surf could afflict the entire state beginning Sunday.
Local authorities in Hawaii were urging most people to shelter at home if they can. John Cummings, the public information officer for Honolulu Emergency Management, said that going to a city-run shelter should be a last resort.
Read this: A busy hurricane season and the coronavirus pandemic 'is a cataclysmic scenario'
Tropical Storm Gonzalo loses bid as Atlantic's first hurricane of the season
Tropical Storm Gonzalo weakened as it moved toward the Windward Islands of the Caribbean on Saturday, losing prospects of becoming the Atlantic's first hurricane of the season, the hurricane center said.
As of 2 p.m. EST Saturday, Gonzalo was about 50 miles northwest of Trinidad, packing sustained winds of 35 mph as the storm moved to the west at 25 mph.
The system is expected to dissipate by Sunday night or Monday after moving over the southeastern Caribbean Sea, according to the center.
Gonzalo is expected to produce total rain accumulations of 1 to 3 inches, with isolated maximum amounts of 5 inches in Barbados and the Windward Islands through Sunday night, the NHC said.
Contributing: The Associated Press
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