Tropical storm to bring life-threatening floods to Texas

Tropical Storm Arthur has formed near the Texas coast, bringing the threat of life-threatening flooding to the southeastern United States. As the first named storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, Arthur was located about 60 km east-northeast of Port O'Connor, Texas, with maximum sustained winds of 75 km/h.

A tropical storm warning is active from High Island, Texas, to Morgan City, Louisiana. This region is a vital energy corridor, housing major refineries and liquefied natural gas processing facilities around Port Arthur and Lake Charles. Experts predict potential oil losses due to offshore platform shutdowns.

Tony Dupont, Chief Operating Officer at Earth Science Associates, estimated that around 10,000 barrels of oil could be lost based on a model of past storms. He noted that such forecasts often include losses from precautionary shutdowns for personnel safety, suggesting current estimates might be on the lower side.

“

Part of the past losses occur due to an abundance of caution for personnel and other dangers, and that is part of the data in the model, though for the current storm we haven’t seen those actions, so it is likely to be on the low side of the forecast.

The Gulf Coast refining region, stretching from Corpus Christi to Pascagoula, Mississippi, accounts for approximately half of the total U.S. refining capacity. Major facilities like Saudi Aramco's Port Arthur plant, with a throughput of 730,000 barrels per day, and Exxon Mobil's Beaumont facility are within the storm's potential path. Energy giants Cheniere and Venture Global also have significant liquefaction facilities in the area.

Arthur is expected to dump 12cm to 25cm of rain across affected areas, with isolated totals possibly reaching 50cm by early Friday. The National Hurricane Center warned of significant and potentially life-threatening flooding, particularly in southeast Louisiana and southern Mississippi, with the heaviest rainfall expected to spread northeastward through the Carolinas and Georgia.

“

Very heavy rainfall is expected to fall across southeast Louisiana into southern Mississippi, where there can be significant and even life-threatening flooding, before spreading northeastward through the Carolinas and Georgia.