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Hurricane Harvey Downgraded To Tropical Storm

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Many Chicago-area residents are keeping a close watch on Hurricane Harvey, as they have loved ones in Texas.

CBS 2's Sandra Torres caught up with a few of those family members who are braving the storm.

Jerri Lynn Moreno, for example, has lived in Corpus Christi, Texas for about 30 years. Via FaceTime, she showed images of her damaged home, which was nearly completely boarded up.

"We had 130 mile an hour winds. It was scary -- we were all worried and wondering if we made a mistake not leaving," she said.

Moreno lives in the South Side of Corpus Christi, which was not under a mandatory evacuation. While she said she felt prepared for the storm, her concern, now, is the flooding, as more rain is in the forecast. Officials warned of "torrential rains" that can cause "catastrophic damage."

The relentless showers are expected to drench the southern part of the state for days; some places can get up to 40 inches of rain.

Moreno has been without electricity since 7 p.m. Friday night, and the possibly of that remaining for the days ahead has increased.

James Brown, a Chicagoan who now lives near Houston -- one of the areas also affected by Hurricane Harvey -- is facing a similar experience.

"I got four texts from people in Chicago asking me how things were going," Brown said. "And I'm thinking, I think I actually might consider dealing with another snowstorm compared to what I'm dealing with at this moment."

And while the full extent of the damage is still being assessed, the fear of what may happen next is on everyone's minds.

"You hope your neighbors will look out for you, but it's really every man for themselves," Brown said.

Moreno also said Border Patrol agents visited her home Saturday to see if everything is OK. This is happening all over southern Texas as different agencies are coming together to check in on residents and assess the damage.

Harvey is the most powerful hurricane to hit the U.S. in a decade, and the first Category 4 storm to make landfill in Texas since 1961. It was downgraded to a tropical storm Saturday.

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