On Monday morning, Hurricane Beryl made landfall near the coastal town of Matagorda, Texas, closing key shipping ports and hitting the oil refining and production sectors. Beryl carried a maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour (129 kilometers an hour) and posing problems for the heart of the country’s energy sector, and leaving more than 2.5 million homes and businesses in total darkness due to power outage.
Beryl is the latest weather disaster to strike Houston this year after a derecho in May blasted skyscraper windows. It’s in Harris County, which has been the riskiest county in the US for weather since 1980. Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick declared a disaster in 121 counties, including Harris, in advance of the storm.
“We’ve had trailers blown over, lots of trees falling down, even a tree falling down and killing someone,” said meteorologist Wendy Wong, with the National Weather Service in Houston.
A nearby liquefied natural gas facility ramped down operations until the storm passed. European natural gas prices rose in response during trading Monday. Some oil operations are also at risk for disruption.
Shell and Chevron said they had shut production or evacuated personnel from their Gulf of Mexico offshore platforms, which produce some 1.8 million barrels per day of oil, roughly 14% of total U.S. output.
Also, Freeport LNG, the third largest liquefied natural gas facility in the U.S., said over the weekend it had ramped down production and would resume operations after the storm had passed.
Marathon Petroleum meanwhile, said it had comprehensive plans in place to protect staff, assets and communities during severe weather, but declined to comment on its 585,000-bpd Galveston Bay refinery operations, as Reuters reported.
According to a report by Rigzone, the Port of Houston has been shut down and Houston officials are warning people to stay off the roads and avoid windows and balconies because of high winds.
David Roth, a meteorologist with the US Weather Prediction Center said: “there’s a lot to be wary of.”