Tropical Storm Bertha came ashore in Louisiana and was positioned southwest of New Orleans early Thursday as it tracked west toward Texas, after forcing beach closures along parts of the Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle to Mississippi.
Bertha made landfall Wednesday afternoon in St. Bernard Parish, roughly 40 miles (65 kilometers) east of New Orleans. Forecasters expected the system to move toward the upper Texas coast on Thursday before weakening and dissipating inland over Texas by Friday.
As of early Thursday, the National Hurricane Center said Bertha was about 110 miles (175 kilometers) southwest of New Orleans and around 120 miles (190 kilometers) southeast of Lake Charles, Louisiana. The storm was moving west at 12 mph (19 kph) and carrying maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (75 kph).
For communities across the Deep South, the primary concerns were strong winds and storm surge. Coastal parks and piers were shut down, along with some low-lying roads. A tropical storm warning extended from Alabama to Louisiana, including New Orleans, where dangerous heat added to already difficult conditions.
Along the Lake Pontchartrain estuary, crowds gathered to watch the rising water as Bertha neared the Louisiana coast. Some children played in floodwaters, while nearby residents continued mowing lawns even as streets began to fill with water.
The hurricane center said tropical-storm-force winds extended as far as 160 miles (260 kilometers) from Bertha’s center. New Orleans Lakefront Airport recorded a 44 mph (71 kph) gust Wednesday afternoon, while powerful winds in Panama City Beach, Florida, toppled a Waffle House sign onto a car.
Still, the National Hurricane Center said the most intense rainfall remained offshore, helping lower the threat of significant flooding.
Louisiana State Climatologist Jay Grymes said Bertha was not expected to cause widespread damage, noting that coastal communities should be able to manage the storm’s impacts.
Gov. Jeff Landry called the forecast “encouraging” but also warned residents to be prepared for some flooding.
Storm surges up to 3 feet (1 meter) were possible in Louisiana and Alabama, forecasters said. Rain totals were forecast between 1 and 4 inches (3 to 10 centimeters), with higher amounts possible in isolated areas.
Elsewhere in the U.S., a line of storms on Tuesday generated reports of tornadoes stretching from Cincinnati to New Jersey. Torrential rains caused flash floods that swamped homes, washed out bridges and led to water rescues in West Virginia, authorities said.
Rare combination of tropical storm and heat warnings
Southern Louisiana was under tropical storm and extreme heat warnings for much of Wednesday — a rare double dose of suffering, the National Weather Service said.
It was the first time in at least two decades that’s happened in the area, the weather service said, citing records that date back to 2005.
Bertha is the second tropical storm of the Atlantic season
Bertha is the second tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. Tropical Storm Arthur in June brought heavy rainfall to the southeastern U.S.
Bertha could dump heavy rain on coastal areas of Mississippi that are still recovering from flooding brought by Arthur that destroyed and damaged homes.
Hurricane Fausto in the Pacific is far from land
In the eastern Pacific Ocean, Hurricane Fausto churned far from land Wednesday. The hurricane was hundreds of miles west-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 kph).
It was forecast to gradually strengthen and the hurricane center said that ocean swells generated by Fausto were spreading along the Baja California coast and likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip tides.
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Associated Press journalists Julie Walker in New York, Kim Chandler in Montgomery, Alabama, and Jaimie Ding in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
