Tropical Storm Bertha, the second named storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, sat due south of Dauphin Island and just southwest of Orange Beach as of 4 a.m. Wednesday, according to National Hurricane Center Advisory 12. The advisory placed the storm’s center near latitude 29.4 north and longitude 88.3 west, roughly 50 miles southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River, with maximum sustained winds down to 50 mph and the system crawling west at just 5 mph. NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft flew through the system overnight to help forecasters pin down its exact position and strength.
Even with the storm sitting so close to the coast on Wednesday, July 22, Orange Beach measured only about half an inch of rain and Gulf Shores recorded roughly three-quarters of an inch. Forecasters said most of Bertha’s rain bands stayed offshore, south of the storm’s center, keeping the Alabama Gulf Coast from seeing the heavier rainfall totals that had appeared possible earlier in the week.
Wind reports told a similar story of a storm brushing past rather than slamming the coast. In the hour before the advisory was issued, a gust of 49 mph was clocked at the Orange Beach Buoy offshore. Farther out, an oil platform in the Mississippi Canyon reported sustained winds of 45 mph with gusts to 56 mph. The National Hurricane Center noted that tropical-storm-force winds still stretch out as far as 105 miles from Bertha’s center, meaning gusty conditions could linger along the coast even as the core of the storm pulls away.
Forecasters expect Bertha to keep moving west through Friday, with some slight acceleration, staying near or along the northern Gulf Coast for the next couple of days before eventually turning toward the Texas coastline. Gradual weakening is expected over the next several days, and the storm’s minimum central pressure was measured at 998 millibars as of the 4 a.m. advisory.
The shifting track also brought changes to the watches and warnings posted along the coast. The Tropical Storm Warning that had covered areas east of the Okaloosa-Walton county line in Florida was discontinued with the latest advisory. A Tropical Storm Warning remains in place from the Okaloosa-Walton county line westward to Morgan City, Louisiana, covering the New Orleans metro area and Lake Pontchartrain, while a Tropical Storm Watch continues from west of Morgan City to Cameron, Louisiana, and for Lake Maurepas.
Along the Alabama shoreline, rough surf is expected to persist at Orange Beach and Gulf Shores through Wednesday, though conditions should improve quickly as Bertha continues its slow push farther west. Beach safety officials are still urging anyone headed to the sand to check posted flag conditions before going in the water and to follow guidance from local beach safety patrols.