Debra's origins were from an area of convection over the western Bahamas and Florida related to an upper-tropospheric cold-core low and a tropical wave on July 15.

Whilst under the influence of a subtropical ridge–or a belt of high pressure–it slowly meandered southwestward and arrived into the Gulf of Mexico on July 20.

A weak surface circulation was observed near 1900 EST (0100 UTC on July 21) which was affected by an inverted trough as they turned westward.

The system's circulation remained indistinct until July 23 as winds of 22–30 knots consorted with squalls adjacent to the coasts of Louisiana and Texas.

[2] Ship communications off the coast on July 24 relayed winds of 23–50 knots and a barometric pressure of 1007.5 mbar (29.75 inHg), which indicated it was a tropical storm on the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale.

[1][2] As the result of a polar trough aloft in the central United States, Debra curved northward though its winds shifted southward, defying the earlier prediction of a bend west-northwest to northwest.

[4] Hurricane Debra's development near the coast was unusual, complicating forecasting in addition to its rapid intensification and abnormal direction.

[9][15] A daily rainfall record of 3.62 inches (92 mm) was achieved at Beaumont, and hurricane-force winds stretched 100 miles (160 km) inland.

[5] An unconfirmed report indicated that a funnel cloud briefly touched down roughly 40 miles (64 km) northwest of Brownsville/South Padre Island International Airport at approximately 0027 UTC, though no damage occurred.

[17] The majority of private piers situated upon the western and northern ends of Galveston Bay were destroyed as a result of Debra's storm surge.

In Fort Worth, the entrance to the Tabernacle Baptist Church was completely destroyed, with its remnants littering the adjacent road.

[9][11][20] A tower 75 feet (23 m) tall utilized for the purpose of hoisting storm warning flags in Freeport was demolished, and damage within the city involved broken windows and roof shingles, in addition to the power outages that occurred.

[21] Reports asserted that one person was engulfed and died offshore the Freeport area, but they were unconfirmed; another individual and their daughter previously listed as missing in the city were discovered at Houston.

[24] A night club at Clute burst into flames during the hurricane and winds created the possibility of the blaze spreading, although it was dealt with after several firemen came to the location.

[20] A ship known as Hope with a crew of three was thrown ashore 35 miles (56 km) southeast of Freeport, but the United States Coast Guard was incapable of rescuing the craft and its shipmembers.

[26] Two tornadoes touched down in Kiowa and Caddo counties, with the prior tracking 20 miles (32 km), resulting in minimal damage.

[25] In Stillwater, three consecutive hours of torrential rains led to an inundation of 8 inches (200 mm) as observed by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.

[21] Heavy rainfall also occurred in Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama,[15] Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio.