 A tropical wave emerged from the coast of Africa with a closed circulation on August 3 . The system split , with the northern portion developing into Hurricane Alberto , while the southern portion of the wave continued westward . Minimal deep convection persisted until the wave reached the Yucatán Peninsula on August 12 . After emerging into the Gulf of Mexico on the following day , satellite imagery and a reconnaissance aircraft flight indicated that the system developed into Tropical Depression Five at 1800 UTC . Early on August 13 , the depression intensified into Tropical Storm Beryl . Despite predictions for Beryl to reach hurricane status , it remained disorganized and peaked as a 50 mph ( 85 km / h ) tropical storm . 
