Ashton Altieri contributed to a report on the Bertha impact on Louisiana Gulf Coast as Tropical Storm Bertha moved just south of the Mississippi coast in the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday, July 22, 2026. The National Hurricane Center said the storm was crawling westward with little acceleration while watches and warnings spread across the northern Gulf Coast.
Forecasters said Bertha was expected to move over the New Orleans area Wednesday night, then continue toward Houston before dissipating by the end of the week. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph in the center's latest update, 10 mph lower than Tuesday night.
New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain
A tropical storm warning was posted from the Okaloosa/Walton County Line in Florida to Morgan City, Louisiana, including New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain. A tropical storm watch was also up for the area west of Morgan City, Louisiana, to Sargent, Texas, and for Lake Maurepas in Louisiana.
The National Hurricane Center said, "Tropical storm conditions will continue spreading across portions of the northern Gulf Coast within the warning area today." It also said, "Tropical storm conditions are possible within the watch area in Louisiana by tonight and along the upper Texas coast by Thursday or Thursday night."
Louisiana and Texas Watches
On Wednesday, watches were expanded to include coastal parts of southwestern Louisiana and northeastern Texas. The warning and watch lines split the region into two different timelines: places in the warning area were already in the period when tropical-storm conditions could spread on Wednesday, while places in the watch area were in the window for those conditions by Wednesday night or later.
That setup left residents from coastal Louisiana through the upper Texas coast with different timing, but the same forecast track pointed toward a broad stretch of shoreline. Bertha was the second named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, after Tropical Storm Arthur made landfall in June along the Gulf Coast of Texas.
Rain and Surge Along Coast
The storm was expected to produce 1 to 4 inches of rain, with isolated higher totals up to 6 inches through Thursday. The National Hurricane Center said, "This rainfall may produce isolated flash flooding, especially in urban areas." It also said the system could raise waters up to 4 feet in some locations along the coast.
For people in Louisiana, the immediate issue was not just the track line. Bertha was weakening as it moved near the coast, but the forecast still called for wind, rain and coastal water rise across the warning area through Wednesday night and into Thursday.
How much Bertha ultimately affects specific coastal communities after Wednesday night will depend on where the storm’s center tracks while it stays close to the coast, and the next update will be measured against whether those warning and watch areas hold as forecast.
