Hurricane Harvey hits Texas head-on

Hurricane Harvey has weakened since it hit South Texas head-on late Friday but forecasters say water levels will still rise as torrential rain and blasting winds continue over the next days, reports CNN

The powerful eye wall of Harvey initially reached land by 11 p.m. ET between Port Aransas and Port O'Connor, Texas, with the then-Category 4 storm packing winds of more than 130 mph. As it moved over land, Harvey gradually lost some of its punch and by 6 a.m. ET was downgraded to a still-dangerous Category 1 hurricane with winds at 90 mph, the National Hurricane centre said.

It was the first Category 4 hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Hurricane Charley in 2004.

Millions of residents along the south Texas coast saw hurricane-force winds that knocked down trees, power poles and signs.

First responders are yet to assess the impact that the extremely powerful hurricane has caused over Texas in the first hours since landfall but forecasters have said it will be devastating and leave areas "uninhabitable for weeks or months."

Harvey has the "highest potential to kill the most amount of people and cause the most amount of damage," said Brock Long, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

As Harvey deluges Texas, coastal cities could see 13 feet of storm surge and as much as 40 inches of rain by Wednesday.