Tropical Storm Alberto was near northeast Mexico early Thursday carrying heavy rains that left at least three people dead but also brought hope to a region suffering under a prolonged, severe drought.
It is the first named storm of the season.
Alberto is expected to get to Mexico’s Gulf coast shortly, then rapidly weaken over land and dissipate later in the day or Thursday night, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Rain from Alberto was falling on both sides of the border, extending up much of the south Texas coast and south to Mexico’s Veracruz state. Rainfall and gusty winds were starting to subside for the Texas coast but were forecast to continue through the morning in northeastern Mexico, the hurricane center said.
As of 5 a.m. EDT, the center of Alberto was approximately 40 miles east of Tampico, Mexico and 250 miles south of Brownsville, Texas and was movong west at 50 mph, with sustained maximum winds of 50 mph.
Rainfall from Alberto should start to diminish across southern Texas during the day, with an inch or less expected, the center said, though there could be “a tornado or two across parts of Deep South Texas.”
