A tropical system is expected to strengthen along the US Gulf Coast within hours, putting millions of Americans on alert for a potential direct strike and dangerous conditions.
The National Hurricane Center has designated the disturbance Tropical Depression Two, and forecasters say it could become a named storm as early as Monday afternoon if winds climb above 39 mph.
If that happens, the system will be named Tropical Storm Bertha, with current projections showing it tracking toward a direct impact on New Orleans by Wednesday afternoon.
Heavy downpours and sustained winds topping 50 mph could sweep across the Gulf region, affecting the Florida Panhandle, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas.
Rough seas and waves reaching up to 16 feet may also endanger boats and coastal communities this week as Bertha moves from east to west.
AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys warned in a statement: ‘Tropical systems can bring dangerous rainfall, flash flooding, and other hazardous impacts regardless of whether they receive an official designation.’
The National Weather Service has already posted tropical storm warnings along Florida’s entire coast, from Tallahassee to Miami, cautioning that the storm could ‘capsize or damage vessels.’
Several locations could see as much as eight inches of rain, including Tallahassee and Panama City in Florida, as well as New Orleans, home to nearly one million people across its seven-parish metropolitan area.
Tropical Depression Two is expected to become a named storm on Monday, July 20
Tropical Depression Two, pictured forming in the Gulf of American, is expected to become a named storm on Monday, July 20
Tropical Storm Bertha is expected to make landfall in Louisiana by Wednesday, July 22
Meteorologists expect Tropical Depression Two to continue strengthening throughout Monday, as it forms in the extremely warm waters of the Gulf of America.
Tropical depressions are the first phase of a major cyclone activity in the Atlantic, meaning the storm has formed a defined center of low pressure and some circulation, but still looks more like a largely undefined, swirling weather system on radars.
Currently, the rapidly forming cyclone has sustained winds of 35 mph, just under the threshold to be officially upgraded to a named tropical storm.
The National Hurricane Center expected stronger thunderstorms to develop and winds to pick up to between 40 and 75 mph by early Tuesday morning, when conditions will likely begin reaching their most dangerous levels.
By Tuesday night, the threat to the US is expected to peak when winds from Bertha reach 50 mph and dangerous waves form along the Gulf Coast.
‘Mariners should alter plans to avoid these hazardous conditions. Remain in port, seek safe harbor, alter course, and/or secure the vessel for severe conditions,’ NWS officials warned in a statement.
Storm models show nearly all tracks for Berth predict it will make landfall in the New Orleans area by 1pm local time on Wednesday.
The last named storm to make landfall in the US was Tropical Storm Chantal in July 2025. The last named storm to strike Louisiana was Hurricane Francine in 2024.
Tropical Storm Bertha is expected form on Monday and cross over Louisiana and Texas before weakening this week
The last named storm to strike Louisiana was Hurricane Francine in 2024 (Pictured). The storm caused widespread flooding and power disruptions
At the same time as Bertha gathers strength in the Gulf, millions of Americans from Minnesota to Louisiana have been dealing with skyrocketing temperatures across the Central US.
In the South, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and parts of Texas are also under a heat advisory on Monday, with the heat index expected to rise to 112 degrees Fahrenheit in New Orleans.
Long-range forecasters recently downgraded their predictions for the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, due to the global weather phenomenon known as El Nino, which historically causes fewer major storms to form in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of America.
On July 7, AccuWeather officially lowered their predictions for hurricane season because of the impact of El Nino, which is a natural climate pattern in which the central and eastern Pacific Ocean surface temperature becomes significantly warmer than average, flipping weather patterns worldwide.
The weather agency now believes there will be between eight and 14 named storms in the Atlantic this year, down from their prediction of 11 to 16 in March.
However, AccuWeather still predicted that four to seven of these storms will reach hurricane strength, and that three to five named storms will make landfall in the US – with Bertha likely being the first this week.
AccuWeather’s Lead Long Range Forecaster Paul Pastelok told the Daily Mail in June that this does not mean Americans should let down their guard in 2026, as a major hurricane can still reach land despite the presence of El Nino.
‘It only takes one storm, and then boom! We’re not saying that El Nino is going to weaken and dampen the Atlantic Basin season completely,’ he said.
‘There’s still a lot of warm water, a lot of potential there. So, [I] just wanted to make sure [if] people were saying, “Oh, we don’t have to worry about anything this year.” That’s not true. It only takes one storm.’
