Fort Bend County is under a flood watch as Tropical Storm Edouard approaches the upper Texas coast, with Missouri City and Stafford bracing for heavy rain and possible flash flooding Tuesday night into Wednesday.

The National Weather Service flood watch covers Fort Bend County through 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 3, according to KPRC 2 meteorologist Justin Stapleton on X. The watch also covers Harris, Galveston, Chambers, Montgomery, Liberty and several other Southeast Texas counties.

The City of Stafford posted an emergency alert on its website Monday, Aug. 31, warning residents to expect heavy rainfall, strong winds and flash flooding from Tuesday night into Wednesday. Stafford said on its official X account that flash flooding, heavy rain and wind are the primary threats for the Stafford area.

What Missouri City and Stafford can expect

Both cities sit west of Interstate 45, which puts them in a lower-risk zone. Space City Weather issued a Stage 1 flood alert for areas west of I-45, projecting 0.5 to 2 inches of rainfall. The heaviest rain is expected east of I-45, where a Stage 2 alert is in effect.

KHOU identified areas west of Houston, including Sugar Land and Richmond, as having a lower risk for the heaviest rain. The greatest impacts are forecast for communities east and northeast of Houston.

Still, the NWS warned that rainfall rates could exceed 3 to 4 inches per hour during the most intense bands, creating flash flood risk even in areas expecting lighter totals. "The main threat is going to be heavy rain and flooding," Matthew Moreland, meteorologist-in-charge at the NWS Houston/Galveston office, told the Galveston Daily News.

Wind gusts in the 20s are expected across most of the region Tuesday, with gusts of 30 to 35 mph possible along and east of I-45, Space City Weather reported.

County and state preparations

Fort Bend County Judge Daniel Wong said on X on Monday that the county was monitoring tropical activity and securing the Epicenter as a major emergency shelter option.

CenterPoint Energy, which serves Missouri City and Stafford, activated its Emergency Operations Center at 8 a.m. Monday, KPRC 2 reported. The company staged 2,700 frontline electric workers and more than 100 gas workers across Greater Houston. All electric substations had been inspected and tested within the last 30 days, the company said.

Gov. Greg Abbott activated the state's emergency operations center around the clock, deploying 20 agencies and 1,500 personnel along with rescue aircraft and swift-water boats, Houston Public Media reported.

Storm details

The National Hurricane Center upgraded the system from Tropical Depression 5 on Monday evening, making Edouard the fifth named storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season. As of 7 p.m. Monday, the storm had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph and was moving west-northwest at 6 mph toward the Jefferson County coast south of Beaumont. KPRC 2 meteorologist Rachel Briers forecast Edouard could reach 65 mph at landfall early Tuesday afternoon.

A hurricane watch was in effect from High Island, Texas, to Cameron, Louisiana, USA Today reported.

The heaviest rain is expected Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. The flood watch for Fort Bend County runs through 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 3.