Tropical Storm Nicholas strengthened just off the Gulf Coast and could blow ashore in Texas as a hurricane Monday, bringing heavy rain and flooding to coastal areas from Mexico to storm-battered Louisiana. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami said top sustained winds reached 60 mph (95 kph). It was traveling north at 12 mph (19 kph) on a forecast track to pass near the South Texas coast later Monday, then move onshore along the coast of south or central Texas by late Monday afternoon or evening. In flood-prone Houston, officials worried the heavy rainfall, expected to hit the city Monday evening and early Tuesday, could inundate streets and possibly flood homes. Authorities had deployed high water rescue vehicles throughout the city as well as barricades at more than 40 locations that tend to flood, said Mayor Sylvester Turner. "This city is very resilient. We know what we need to do," said Turner, referencing four major flood events that have hit the Houston area in recent years, including devastating damage in 2017 from Hurricane Harvey. Several schools in the Houston and Galveston area were closed Monday because of the incoming storm. The Houston school district, the state's largest, announced it was canceling classes on Tuesday. Nicholas was centered roughly 45 miles (72 kilometers) northeast of the mouth of the Rio Grande River in deep South Texas, and 140 miles (225 kilometers) south of Port O'Connor, Texas, as of Monday morning. Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm Subscribe to our newest channel Quicktake Explained: https://bit.ly/3iERrup Bloomberg Quicktake brings you live global news and original shows spanning business, technology, politics and culture. Make sense of the stories changing your business and your world. To watch complete coverage on Bloomberg Quicktake 24/7, visit http://www.bloomberg.com/qt/live, or watch on Apple TV, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Fire TV and Android TV on the Bloomberg app. Have a story to tell? Fill out this survey for a chance to have it featured on Bloomberg Quicktake: https://cor.us/surveys/27AF30 Connect with us on… YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Bloomberg Breaking News on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BloombergQuickTakeNews Twitter: https://twitter.com/quicktake Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/quicktake Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quicktake