While storm surges, evacuations and major flooding is not of normal concern when a Hurricane threatens the Texas Coast, here in the Brazos Valley, given the right conditions, we are not totally immune to tropical damage ourselves.

Should a major hurricane, say of Category 3, 4 or 5 hit somewhere such as Houston or Galveston, by the time it made it to our backyard it could still be a powerful Tropical Storm or even Category 1 or 2 storm. The main concern: tornadoes, heavy, torrential rainfall and of course very strong, damaging winds.

The wind speeds that classify a storm are listed as:

--Tropical Storm………………39-73mph

--Category 1 Hurricane….……74-95mph

--Category 2 Hurricane……….96-110mph

--Category 3 Hurricane……….111-130mph

--Category 4 Hurricane……….131-155mph

--Category 5 Hurricane………..156+ mph

By that measure, winds sustained between 60 to 100 miles per hour, if not more, could be possible right here at home. Those types of winds can cause power outages, topple trees, weak structures, like sheds or a chimney, along with injure and threaten life if caught outside as debris is flying around. When you see evacuation preparations along the coast, usually the first thing folks do is board up windows. Again, while winds here will be a bit more tame than the coast, it is not out of the question to find those damaging winds.

To learn more about what you can do to prepare now before a storm threatens the coast, pick up a 2010 Hurricane Tracking Chart at the water display at area HEB stores or at Batteries Plus.