Special Marine Warning Issued for Lake Pontchartrain, Mississippi Sound, and Surrounding Coastal Waters
This alert is no longer in effect.
NOAA issued it on April 6, 2026, 4 months ago. Warnings of this kind stay in effect for hours to a few days, so this page is a historical record of what was issued, not a current warning. For conditions where you are right now, check weather.gov (US), weather.gc.ca (Canada), the Met Office (UK), or the Bureau of Meteorology (Australia).
Areazine synthesizes this NWS weather alert directly from NOAA's official public data feed. See our methodology for full source attribution and refresh cadence.
The National Weather Service has issued a Special Marine Warning for coastal Louisiana and Mississippi waters through 3:15 AM CST due to severe thunderstorms capable of producing waterspouts.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- Special Marine Warning
- Affected area
- Gulf Coast Region
- Issued
- April 6, 2026
- Issuing authority
- NWS New Orleans
Marine notices apply to named waters or shoreline zones. They may not describe conditions on land, even when the nearest place name is the same.
Record status: historical. It was issued 4 months ago; use the issuing agency's live warning service for current conditions in Gulf Coast Region.
Alert Details
The National Weather Service in New Orleans LA has issued a Special Marine Warning (Alert Level: Severe) for several coastal water bodies. The alert was issued at 1:47 AM CST following radar detection of severe thunderstorms moving through the region.
Affected Areas
The warning covers the following marine areas:
- Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Maurepas
- Mississippi Sound
- Lake Borgne
- Chandeleur Sound
- Breton Sound
Impacted land-based locations and landmarks include Yscloskey, Biloxi, Waveland, Pass Christian, Ship Island, Lake Borgne, Chandeleur Sound, Eden Isle, Cat Island, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi Sound, Long Beach, Rigolets, Gulf Park Estates, Ocean Springs, and Gulfport.
What You Should Do
Boaters and individuals near the water should take immediate precautions:
- Seek shelter or move to a safe harbor immediately until the hazardous weather passes.
- Ensure all persons on board are wearing life jackets.
- Avoid the warning area as strong winds and sudden waves pose a significant danger to small craft.
Expected Conditions
At 1:46 AM CST, a cluster of severe thunderstorms was located along a line extending from 17 nautical miles northwest of Waveland to 7 nautical miles southeast of Orleans Marina. The system is moving northeast at 55 knots.
Primary hazards include:
- Waterspouts: These can form quickly and capsize boats or damage vessels and oil rigs.
- Wind: Gusts up to 40 knots.
- Hail: Small hail is possible.
- Waves: Suddenly higher waves are expected in the vicinity of the storms.
Timeline
The Special Marine Warning is effective from 1:47 AM CST until 3:15 AM CST on February 15. Additionally, a Tornado Watch remains in effect for southeastern Louisiana, southern Mississippi, and adjacent coastal waters until 5:00 AM CST.
Original source: NOAA Official Notice ↗
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