Bertha downgraded again. What to know as former tropical storm dissipates

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The Gulf Coast may still be seeing some effects from the remnants of Tropical Storm Bertha as the storm continues to degenerate, forecasters from the National Hurricane Center said in its final advisory on the system.As of 11 p.m. ET on July 23, the center of Bertha was located 40 miles from Houston, Texas and was moving west at 14 mph. It still had maximum sustained winds of 35 mph. Bertha was downgraded to a tropical depression and then to a trough.Bertha's remnants were expected to bring some rain to South Texas overnight, which could result in some isolated flash flooding in urban areas, but most of the major impacts from the storm are over, the hurricane center said. The former tropical storm was still bringing some heavy rain to some portions of South Texas on July 24, according to AccuWeather.The hurricane center said water levels may remain elevated in the area through the next high tide.All tropical storm and coastal watches and warnings have been discontinued.Bertha intensified from a tropical depression on July 20 and became the second storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, which is expected to be on the quiet side due to the storm-snuffing effects of the potent El Niño that's currently underway in the Pacific Ocean."No additional tropical development is expected across the Atlantic Basin through the rest of July," according to Alex DaSilva, AccuWeather lead hurricane expertThe storm had a decidedly lopsided look on satellite images, which was a positive sign for those in hurricane-prone regions. The fledgling storm was affected by shearing winds that forecasters expected to prevent it from building into the kind of hurricane that can sometimes quickly develop in the Gulf just offshore.But as the storm battered the Gulf Coast, it still shuttered beaches, damaged trees, buildings and signs in scattered locations along the coast, and foiled SpaceX's latest attempt to launch its massive Starship rocket from South Texas.Contributing: Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA TODAY; Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida