Tropical Storm Don, the year's first major Gulf of Mexico storm, lost much of its punch as it moved ashore in South Texas late Friday.
Don weakened to a tropical depression with sustained winds of about 35 miles per hour as it made landfall near Baffin Bay, 40 miles south of Corpus Christi, U.S. forecasters said.
The storm's path took it well to the west of the largest concentration of offshore oil and natural gas platforms and onshore refineries along the Gulf Coast.
Don could drop 1 to 2 inches of rain on drought-stricken Texas before dissipating over southern Texas by Sunday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.
Earlier, costal Texas residents filled up their cars, moved off the nearby islands, and hoped for a good rain event.
About 500 students were evacuated from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi earlier on Friday, and some flights from Corpus Christi International Airport were canceled.
Tripp Howse brought his daughter, Kaitlin, and her friend Callie Brown, both 11, to the Bob Hall Pier near Corpus Christi to surf the storm waves. "It's usually flat in the summer doldrums," Howse said.
In Corpus Christi, city beach crews gathered up lifeguard stands, garbage cans and any other items that could become debris in the storm's winds.
Officials also cleared local drains to cut down any chance of flooding.
About 500 students living at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, which is located on an island, were evacuated Friday morning. About 75 of those students were taken to Texas A&M International University in Laredo.
Padre Island National Seashore officials had closed all its beaches as well as park and access roads by Friday afternoon.
Some residents spent the day enjoying the waves kicked up by the storm, as well as preparing for its landfall.
Tripp Howse brought his daughter, Kaitlin, and her friend Callie Brown, both 11, to the Bob Hall Pier near Corpus Christi to surf the storm waves.
Howse, who had been surfing since about 10 a.m. Friday, said waves had risen by 3 to 4 feet by early afternoon.
"It's usually flat in the summer doldrums," said Howse, who has surfed for more than 30 years.
But Howse said he bought some extra food and put gas in his vehicle just in case Don decided to take a turn for the worse.
"When you live on the coast," he said, "you need to be ready at all times."
Bill Fintel planned to spend the night Friday in his restaurant at Bob Hall Pier.
"I'm looking at this like a thunderstorm," Fintel said. "Move in, move out, it's over."
Fintel, owner of Barnacle Bill's Pier House and Grill, wanted to make sure his business didn't have any leaks or other minor damages during the first storm to make landfall in the 2011 hurricane season.
Fintel said he received a record number of customers at his restaurant Thursday, as well as a 20 percent increase to his business Friday.
"So far, it has been positive here," he said.
At least eight flights at Corpus Christi International Airport were canceled Friday because of the storm.
Both Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi and Del Mar College in Corpus Christi closed Friday and planned to reopen Monday.
Fintel called the mild tropical storm a blessing because it raised residents' awareness of the hurricane season.
"They're prepared for the next one," he said.
The tropical storm, however, was not expected to be enough to make much of a dent in the state's epic drought, according to Texas State Climatologist John Nielson-Gammon.
"We're looking at 5 inches of rain, and that is about a month and a half's worth of rain for these areas," he said. "Texas has seen the driest nine months in its history, and many areas are 15 inches below where they would usually be this time of year."
Nielson-Gammon said the fact that the Atlantic and Gulf was seeing its fourth named storm of the season in July was evidence that the La Nina system that has been causing the Texas drought may be breaking down.
"Hopefully we will get more tropical storms and not get hurricanes," he said. "We could use the rain, but not the wind."
