Texas hunkers down as Hurricane Beryl approaches

The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in its latest update that winds were reaching 80 miles (130 kilometers) per hour as Beryl approached the Texas coast. "Conditions (are) deteriorating with dangerous storm surge, flash flooding, and strong winds expected," the NHC warned early Monday. The National Weather Service issued a tornado alert for parts of Texas including Houston, which is home to 2.3 million people. "We have to take Beryl very, very seriously. Our worst enemy is complacency," said Houston Mayor John Whitmire.