Hurricane

Tropical Storm Bertha made landfall in Louisiana and was southwest of New Orleans while moving west toward Texas early Thursday morning, after closing beaches on the Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle to Mississippi.

Tropical Storm Bertha strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico and was moving slowly toward the Florida Panhandle, causing a tropical storm warning and storm surge watches around the state line between Florida and Alabama, forecasters said. The storm was about 125 miles south of Panama City, Florida, and 200 miles southeast of Mobile.

The remnants of Tropical Storm Arthur battered parts of the southeastern United States with heavy rain and wind on Thursday, damaging buildings, downing trees and knocking out power as flash flood and tornado warnings were issued along the Gulf Coast. Drenching rain stretches from Central Alabama to Mobile and the Eastern Shore.

The first tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season formed Wednesday near the Gulf Coast, bringing intense rain and the threat of dangerous flash floods to states including Texas and Louisiana, meteorologists said. Tropical Storm Arthur was a disorganized cluster of storms that brought rain for days over parts of eastern Mexico and the Gulf. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said conditions were conducive for a short-lived tropical storm to form.

The National Hurricane Center is watching a cluster of storms along the Gulf Coast could become the first named tropical storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season. The storms threatened to bring heavy downpours that could lead to dangerous floods across southern states including Texas and Louisiana.

As forecasters with the National Hurricane Center watch the progress of Hurricane Erin, weather watchers say the most powerful storms tend to form later in the year.

Hurricane season is underway and it looks like there are fewer people watching for storms along the Gulf of Mexico. The Trump White House has reportedly made staff cuts to fifteen National Weather Service centers that serve the Gulf.

The 2025 hurricane season starts this weekend. Forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration say there’s a sixty percent of an above average number of major storms this year. Up to five named hurricanes are expected during the season.

A new Alabama study of hurricane-affected homes sends a clear message to insurers and homeowners nationwide: climate-resilient construction methods can protect homes, and save a lot of money. The first-of-its-kind analysis, released this week, reviews thousands of insurance claims linked to Hurricane Sally, which struck Alabama's coast in 2020 with wind speeds up to 105 miles per hour.

Florida is about to begin what expected to be a long recovery from Hurricane Milton. That storm as well as Helene have heightened concerns over misinformation about post storm relief efforts from the federal government.