Latest Tropical Storm Bertha Update for Lake Charles and SWLA

Lake Charles, Louisiana - Right now in Southwest Louisiana, we're dealing with the scorching heat that is covering most of the State right now, and now we're going to have to deal with some tropical conditions from Tropical Storm Bertha. We're taking a look at the latest update and how it may impact the Lake Charles and Southwest Louisiana area...

As we've talked about in the past, the National Hurricane Center and Colorado State University are calling for a below-average 2026 hurricane season. Experts say a strong El Niño pattern is one of the main reasons fewer storms are expected. That typically creates conditions that make it harder for hurricanes to form and strengthen in the Atlantic.

After monitoring it for a few days, on Monday the storm was upgraded to a tropical storm and is expected to bring impacts to parts of Louisiana late Wednesday night into early Thursday morning.

Latest Update For Tropical Storm Bertha

The latest updates from the National Hurricane Center show Bertha is expected to make landfall along the eastern Louisiana coastline. The storm is currently not a large or well-organized system, but forecasters say it could strengthen before reaching land.

The center of the storm is expected to move near the Louisiana and upper Texas coast through Thursday before moving farther inland across Texas on Friday.

Bertha is expected to slowly weaken over the next few days, but it could remain a tropical storm through late Thursday. As of the latest update, Bertha had maximum sustained winds around 45 mph and was moving slowly northwest at about 7 mph.

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SWLA Impacts for Tropical Storm Bertha

According to KPLC First Alert Weather, a few showers and storms are possible Wednesday night into Thursday, with the heaviest impacts expected closer to the coast. Cameron Parish remains under a Tropical Storm Watch, but rainfall totals are expected to stay light.