AVOYELLES PARISH, LA — A historic and catastrophic weather event has shattered Louisiana’s all-time 24-hour rainfall record. On Thursday, June 18, 2026, part of the slow-moving remnants of Tropical Storm Arthur unleashed an unprecedented deluge on Avoyelles Parish.

According to data released by the National Weather Service (NWS) in Lake Charles, a volunteer observer with the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) measured a staggering 29.06 inches of rain just three miles southeast of Cottonport, Louisiana.

What makes the total particularly astonishing is the timeframe. The state's previous 24-hour record was 22 inches on August 29, 1962, in Hackberry from a non-tropical storm. This new historic standard of nearly 30 inches fell in less than 12 hours.

Multi-Radar Multi-Sensor (MRMS) estimated precipitation maps from the NWS illustrate a tightly packed, intense bullseye of precipitation centered directly over the Cottonport, Mansura, and Simmesport areas. The data confirms a highly localized but devastating meteorological event.

While the NWS has emphasized that the 29.06-inch record is technically considered "preliminary" until it undergoes a final, formal review by the National Center for Environmental Information (NCEI). The mind-boggling total has already been analyzed and verified by both NWS meteorologists and the Louisiana State Climatologist.