Hurricane Harvey Closes Texas Ports

Hurricane Harvey, currently a Category 2 storm, is rapidly becoming more powerful and is forecast to become a Category 3 storm with winds of at least 111 mph by the time it hits the middle Texas coast late Friday or early Saturday. The storm surge is expected to travel from the Gulf of Mexico, into Galveston Bay, and up the Houston shipping channel, potentially crippling Port Houston. In preparation for the storm, Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday declared a state of emergency for 30 counties, including Harris County where Port Houston is located.

With Hurricane Harvey’s arrival now imminent, ports and terminals between Port O'Connor and Matagorda Bay, just northeast of Corpus Christi, will all prepare for closings and alternate routes for shipments.  Most ports along the Texas coastline will close early today including Houston Terminal and Bayport which will cease gate operations at 11am CST and vessel operations and 12pm CST.  Most likely all closures will remain throughout the weekend to all incoming and outgoing vessels. Officials said they will communicate plans as soon as possible regarding if the terminals will reopen on Monday.