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Southeast Texas is in the midst of its first hurricane of 2024 as Hurricane Beryl passes through, but damaging effects in Orange seem to be minimal thus far.

Orange City Manager Mike Kunst said no major damage has been reported in the city.

“The typical thing we’re hearing is the wind blowing tree limbs down,” Kunst said. “We’re kind of lucky right now. Things may be moderate for a tropical storm or hurricane, so it seems like we’re doing good.”

The city of Orange closed boat ramps due to elevated water levels, which may cause localized flooding in nearby areas.

Orange County will likely see more rain and high wind gusts up to 55 miles per hour over the course of the afternoon. The National Weather Service has also issued a tornado watch until 10 p.m. for the area, with conditions causing an elevated chance of a tornado to form.

Around 5,000 Orange County residents are without power according to the latest numbers on Entergy’s outage maps. Restoration times will vary depending on weather conditions and availability of repair crews.

Earlier today, Orange County Judge John Gothia issued a Declaration of Disaster for the county due to risk of damaging wind, rain and possible flooding.

Hurricane Beryl made landfall as a Category 1 near Matagorda, Texas around 4 a.m. this morning before traveling northeast through the Houston and Southeast Texas regions.

“We’re all thankful this isn’t worse than it could’ve been,” Kunst said.

Residents should continue to monitor local forecasts throughout the day to stay updated on conditions in the region.