Port of Brownsville, along the U.S.-Mexico border, said on Wednesday that it would limit ship traffic due to gale force winds from Hurricane Beryl, a Category 4 hurricane heading for the Gulf.
Only vessels that will be able to finish and sail by Friday night or Saturday early morning will be allowed to come in, said Michael Davis, Harbor Master at Port of Brownsville.
All river barges will need to depart no later than noon on Friday and vessels remaining in the port must double up lines and ensure that they are properly anchored, the port said in its notice.
Normal operations are expected to resume on Tuesday, Davis added.
The Port of Corpus Christi said it has raised its Hurricane Readiness Status to Hurricane Readiness Level 3 due to anticipated tropical conditions in the Gulf of Mexico.
"The Port continues to monitor possible impact scenarios for the developing system in and around the Coastal Bend region," the port added in its notice.
The U.S. Coast Guard implemented Port Condition Whiskey from the Colorado locks to the U.S. Mexico border, which includes the port of Corpus Christi. Whiskey is set when gale force winds are expected to arrive at the port within 72 hours.
(Reuters - Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar in Houston and Anushree Mukherjee in Bengaluru, Editing by William Maclean and Sandra Maler)