Tropical storm fails to reach hurricane strength, no major damage

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GALVESTON, Texas - Tropical storm Edouard hit the Texas Gulf coast east of Galveston yesterday with strong winds and heavy rain, but did little more than soak the travellers who came to relax on the tourist town's beaches.

The storm's centre made landfall east of Galveston and west of the Louisiana border, between the small coastal town of High Island and Sabine Pass, and was weakening as it headed inland.

Though forecasters had feared it could become a hurricane and both Texas and Louisiana had made emergency preparations, winds never reached hurricane strength of 119 km/h. No major damage was reported. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm was expected to drop in strength by early today to a tropical depression, meaning top sustained winds of less than 63 km/h.

In Galveston, a few surfers were in the water and some people were riding bikes at the beach as the rains approached.

"We are just out here enjoying it, trying to feel that good breeze that's coming in," said Robert Lemon, 45, of Sweeny, who said he was hoping the storm passed quickly so he could do some fishing.

On Bolivar peninsula, a thin strip of land northeast of Galveston that separates Galveston Bay from the Gulf of Mexico, emergency workers were ready but had little to do. A few sat at the Gilchrist fire station amid emergency supplies, bottled water and air mattresses. But none of the 700 or so residents had called for help.

"We've fared this pretty well, thank God. We've had a lot worse," said April Rosenthal, the town's emergency medical administrator.

Edouard skirted the Louisiana coast on its way to Texas, raising tides and pushing water into bayous and yards. Residents of low-lying areas south of the Intracoastal Waterway in Cameron were ordered to evacuate Monday but were expected to be able to return late yesterday. Parish officials have been quick to order evacuations ahead of storms since hurricane Audrey in 1957 killed about 500 people in Cameron.