Local · Trusted · Free
The Morning Impact — your neighborhood's most important stories, delivered every morning.
Updated July 21, 9:00 a.m.
Officials with the National Weather Service upgraded the tropical depression in the Gulf to Tropical Storm Bertha, which still hold potential to affect the Houston area according to models.
The details
As of 2:00 a.m., Tropical Storm Bertha is the second named storm of the 2026 Atlantic Hurricane Season and is expected to impact Louisiana before approaching the Texas coast.
"Bertha is expected to begin moving westward by Wednesday, possibly bringing impacts to SE Texas. Active monitoring of Bertha should continue despite the unfavorable environment ahead of it," NWS officials said in a statement.
Officials are still urging residents to stay aware of the storm as it develops and moves westward through July 24, when Tropical Storm Bertha is projected to begin impacting Texas.
Posted July 20, 3:00 p.m.
According to officials with the National Weather Service, a tropical depression is working on gaining strength and organization in the Gulf, and Houston area officials are monitoring the storm for potential local impacts.
What we know
Officials with the Houston-Galveston office of the NWS released advisories for Tropical Depression Two, a weather disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico that has the potential to turn into a tropical storm by July 21.
"By Wednesday, the system is expected to turn westward, placing it on a trajectory towards our region," NWS officials said in a statement. "Increasing wind shear, dry air, and land interaction with Louisiana may end up weakening the system as it approaches southeast Texas, but y'all know that every system in the Gulf is worth keeping an eye on. So, we advise that you remain updated on the tropics in case the trends change."
Based on current models from the NWS, the storm could bring tropical storm-level winds and rain to the Greater Houston area over the weekend.
Stay tuned
Officials are urging residents to check all hurricane preparations regardless of additional storm development in the coming days.
"Wind shear and interaction with land over the next two days will determine what effects if any will be seen here in Montgomery County," officials with the Montgomery County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management released in a statement. "While not yet time to let our guard down, we will push updates out as they come."
Local energy companies are also preparing by checking lines and equipment ahead of any storm making landfall.
“Our CenterPoint Energy team is taking action and we are prepared to respond to potential impacts to our system from Tropical Depression 2. We have activated our Emergency Operations Center as we continue closely monitoring active weather along the Gulf Coast," said Nathan Brownell, CenterPoint Energy's vice president of resilience and capital delivery. "With the storm forecast to reach Greater Houston by Friday, if any weather-related outages occur, our crews will be ready to respond and restore power safely and as quickly as possible. We urge customers to stay aware of evolving weather conditions and have a plan to stay safe."
If the storm continues to gain strength, it will become Tropical Storm Bertha, per the NWS.
