Although Beryl was only a Category 1 storm, it inflicted widespread wind damage throughout Pearland.
“… [T]he main story in the days and weeks after Hurricane Beryl was the widespread and prolonged power outages coupled with the steamy Texas July heat. Over 2.7 million households and businesses were without power. This left millions without air conditioning, exacerbating the impacts of heat and humidity, leaving much of the population more vulnerable to heat related illness… Data from the Houston Health Department indicated an increased in heat related illnesses during the power outages caused by the derecho in May. Beryl resulted in nearly triple the amount of power outages than the derecho. In addition, the period after Beryl was much hotter than the days following the derecho. Therefore, we opted to issue heat advisories in the days after Beryl despite
14 roads flooded. Roads rendered impassable or passable only via high- clearance vehicle.
Winds abated quickly. Floodwater receded quickly.
Heavily damaged the electrical power grid, leading to prolonged power outages. Outages in Pearland persisted for nearly a week.
temperatures and heat index values that were technically below the usual criteria. Unfortunately, the number of heat related illness cases surged significantly in the days following Beryl as per the Houston Health Department. Hurricane Beryl – July 2024 NWS Houston/Galveston TX, December 30, 2024
Daily counts of Heat Related Illness (HRI) as per the Houston Health Department. There is a noticeable HRI increase after the May 16 derecho and a much larger HRI increase after Hurricane Beryl hit on July 8.
In light of recent history, Pearland should anticipate increased frequency of disaster in its various forms and increasing demand for disaster response and recovery competence, proficiency, and capability.
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