Tropical Storm Arthur Moves Inland Near Matagorda County, Texas, Threatening Life-Threatening Flooding

Tropical Storm Arthur, the first named system of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, moved inland near Matagorda County, Texas, after forming near the Texas coast and was expected to bring life-threatening flooding across portions of the Southeastern U.S.

“MIAMI -- Tropical Storm Arthur has formed in the Gulf near the middle Texas coast, according to the National Weather Service (NWS)”

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The National Hurricane Center said Arthur’s maximum sustained winds were 45 miles per hour (75 km/h) and that a tropical storm warning was in effect from Sargent, Texas, to Morgan City, Louisiana.

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The Washington Post reported that Arthur was forecast to bring another 5 to 10 inches of rain to the southeast, with as much as 20 inches falling in some areas, while the National Hurricane Center warned that heavy rainfall and life-threatening flash flooding would persist even after Arthur dissipates.

As the storm’s moisture shield spread, the Washington Post said at least two people have died in Texas amid this week’s heavy rains, and it also warned of an increased tornado threat through Thursday as Arthur’s swirling remnants moved across the region.

In its advisory, the National Hurricane Center said the storm could dissipate by Wednesday night or early Thursday, while Reuters reported that the storm was located about 20 miles (35 km) north-northwest of Matagorda, Texas, on Wednesday afternoon.

FOX Weather said the National Hurricane Center’s 8:00 p.m. ET advisory placed Arthur’s disorganized center about 10 miles northwest of Galveston, Texas, moving northeast at 8 mph with a minimum central pressure of 1000 mb.

FOX Weather reported that officials had officially discontinued the Tropical Storm Warning west of High Island, Texas, while the warning remained in effect from High Island eastward to Morgan City, Louisiana, and it stressed that the flash flood threat remained entirely unchanged.

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The Washington Post quoted the Hurricane Center saying the threat extends well away from the center and will persist even after Arthur dissipates, and it described the storm’s worst impacts as likely still to come.

In Picayune, Mississippi, FOX Weather said a local resident, Kristina Malott, captured footage showing a front yard swallowed by rising water and included the line, "This happened within 30 minutes. Whole downtown was flooded. My chickens drowned."

The Washington Post also said meteorologists forecast areas of prolific rainfall to lurch across southern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle from Wednesday night through Thursday, before deluges reached Georgia and South Carolina.

Reuters reported that a model from Earth Science Associates was forecasting that around 20,000 barrels of oil could be lost because of shut-ins at offshore platforms in the storm’s path, and Earth Science Associates Chief Operating Officer Tony Dupont said the forecast was likely to be on the low side.

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Reuters also said the Gulf Coast refining region from Corpus Christi to Pascagoula, Mississippi, holds around half of U.S. refining capacity of 18.4 million barrels per day, and it identified Motiva Enterprises’ Port Arthur, Texas plant as the largest U.S. refinery with throughput of 730,000 bpd.

The Washington Post said the wet start to hurricane season came as the Federal Emergency Management Agency grappled with the loss of as much as a quarter of its staff over the past year and a half, and it quoted Cameron Hamilton acknowledging that "Certainly FEMA operates in a unique environment where there are challenges and setbacks that impact our ability to respond."

In New Orleans, the Associated Press quoted Mayor Helena Moreno urging residents to stay weather alert and said city officials were preparing boats and setting up barricades in known flood areas, while city workers set up locations for residents to collect sandbags.

The Associated Press said the main threat from Arthur was a prolonged, multiday, heavy rainfall event that could produce dangerous to life threatening flash flooding, and it added that flooding was likely through Friday over parts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and the Florida Panhandle.