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CNN Live Saturday

Tropical Storm Erika Misses Texas

Aired August 16, 2003 - 12:16   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


FREDERICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Tropical storm Erika misses Texas making landfall in Mexico, however, winds from the storm are pounding the Texas coastline. Some area had gusts of up to 50 miles per hour and higher. The National Hurricane Center cancelled tropical storm and hurricane warnings for the U.S. coast, still, residents are facing a whole lot of rain, in fact our Rob Marciano is keeping a close watch on thing right now. How much rain are we taking possibly, Rob?
ROB MARCIANO, METEOROLOGIST: You know, this is a fast mover, Fredricka, so not as much rain as we're concerned about, really. If it was a lot slower, we'd be talking about serious flooding across Florida. As a matter of fact, I haven't really found much more than an inch of rain or just less than that in officially in Brownsville in the last six hours since this thing came on shore. So, most of the rain is heading into northern Mexico, so that's where the problems are gong to be over the next day to day and a half especially as you get into Northern Mexico into this area, very high mountains and when those clouds and that tropical moisture slams up against the mountains, you get torrential downpours and they have, over the past many years, that these thing come on shore, they see, not only flooding problems, but also mudslide issues, so we'll watch that for Northern Mexico.

But, here's Brownsville, as you mentioned, it came on shore just to the south of Brownsville, right not its 55 miles southwest of Matamoras, Mexico.

Corpus Christi, about as far hasn't saw any sort of action today, but there have been big waves, that's been the main concern, the threat with this thing. There have been some heavy rains, but the wind gusts to 50 miles per hour did not reach hurricane status. Now the winds dropped, or at least the sustained winds dropped, to about 50 miles an hour, so tropical storm Erika will continue to decrease in intensity as it continues to move on shore and the rainfall will continue to decrease at least across parts of Southern Texas and across the Rio Grand.

Talk some more about what's happening around the rest of the country. It is monsoon season, we have seen showers this morning, continue to hold on. Around the Grand Canyon, just to the east of Las Vegas, and we expect more showers and storms to pop up across the inner mountain West including places like maybe Phoenix, Arizona or Salt Lake City. Also, some thundershowers, a good bet, east of the Appalachian mountain chain, this watch box for severe weather across much of Maine today, maybe some hail, maybe some strong winds and definitely some thunder and lightning. There's a very warm and humid air mass up and down the East Coast and we have a pretty weak frontal boundary that's slamming up against that very warm and humid air mass and that's why we're seeing the threat for some showers especially to the North.

Down to the South, kind of hit and miss stuff. Temperatures will be in the 90s into the 80s, near 90s across the Northeast. The big blue "H" as it drives in across the Great Lakes. Chicago, mostly dry, today. That drier air will slide to the East Coast, tomorrow. Tomorrow it's going to be a much drier day; it will be warm and dry across Kansas City, near 100, there. And those inner mountain showers, good morning, West Coast -- temperatures in Los Angeles, today, getting to around 90 degrees and temperatures across Northwest, are pleasant into the 70s.

That's the latest on Erika and the weekend weather. Back to you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired August 16, 2003 - 12:16   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDERICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Tropical storm Erika misses Texas making landfall in Mexico, however, winds from the storm are pounding the Texas coastline. Some area had gusts of up to 50 miles per hour and higher. The National Hurricane Center cancelled tropical storm and hurricane warnings for the U.S. coast, still, residents are facing a whole lot of rain, in fact our Rob Marciano is keeping a close watch on thing right now. How much rain are we taking possibly, Rob?
ROB MARCIANO, METEOROLOGIST: You know, this is a fast mover, Fredricka, so not as much rain as we're concerned about, really. If it was a lot slower, we'd be talking about serious flooding across Florida. As a matter of fact, I haven't really found much more than an inch of rain or just less than that in officially in Brownsville in the last six hours since this thing came on shore. So, most of the rain is heading into northern Mexico, so that's where the problems are gong to be over the next day to day and a half especially as you get into Northern Mexico into this area, very high mountains and when those clouds and that tropical moisture slams up against the mountains, you get torrential downpours and they have, over the past many years, that these thing come on shore, they see, not only flooding problems, but also mudslide issues, so we'll watch that for Northern Mexico.

But, here's Brownsville, as you mentioned, it came on shore just to the south of Brownsville, right not its 55 miles southwest of Matamoras, Mexico.

Corpus Christi, about as far hasn't saw any sort of action today, but there have been big waves, that's been the main concern, the threat with this thing. There have been some heavy rains, but the wind gusts to 50 miles per hour did not reach hurricane status. Now the winds dropped, or at least the sustained winds dropped, to about 50 miles an hour, so tropical storm Erika will continue to decrease in intensity as it continues to move on shore and the rainfall will continue to decrease at least across parts of Southern Texas and across the Rio Grand.

Talk some more about what's happening around the rest of the country. It is monsoon season, we have seen showers this morning, continue to hold on. Around the Grand Canyon, just to the east of Las Vegas, and we expect more showers and storms to pop up across the inner mountain West including places like maybe Phoenix, Arizona or Salt Lake City. Also, some thundershowers, a good bet, east of the Appalachian mountain chain, this watch box for severe weather across much of Maine today, maybe some hail, maybe some strong winds and definitely some thunder and lightning. There's a very warm and humid air mass up and down the East Coast and we have a pretty weak frontal boundary that's slamming up against that very warm and humid air mass and that's why we're seeing the threat for some showers especially to the North.

Down to the South, kind of hit and miss stuff. Temperatures will be in the 90s into the 80s, near 90s across the Northeast. The big blue "H" as it drives in across the Great Lakes. Chicago, mostly dry, today. That drier air will slide to the East Coast, tomorrow. Tomorrow it's going to be a much drier day; it will be warm and dry across Kansas City, near 100, there. And those inner mountain showers, good morning, West Coast -- temperatures in Los Angeles, today, getting to around 90 degrees and temperatures across Northwest, are pleasant into the 70s.

That's the latest on Erika and the weekend weather. Back to you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com