Hurricane Hanna's winds battering south Texas coast, area hit hard by COVID

HOUSTON -- Hurricane Hanna strengthened on Saturday as it made landfall on the Texas coast and threatened an area of the country that has been battered by the COVID-19 pandemic in recent weeks.

Hurricane-force winds punished the southeastern Texas coast, ripping piers out of bays and tearing roofs off homes. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) warned that a potentially deadly storm surge was likely across a broad swath of land. Hanna made landfall on Padre Island Saturday afternoon.

Hanna, a Category 1 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, came ashore on Padre Island and later made a second landfall in Eastern Kennedy County, Texas.

It is forecast to weaken as it moves inland over south Texas tonight and into northeastern Mexico on Sunday, but it could spawn powerful tornadoes on the coastal plains.

"Any hurricane is an enormous challenge," Texas Governor Greg Abbott said during a Saturday briefing about the storm. "This challenge is complicated and made even more severe, seeing that it's sweeping through an area that is the most challenged area in the state for COVID-19."

Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 32 counties in Texas that are in the storm's path.