The third named storm of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season, Claudette originated from a broad trough of low pressure over the Bay of Campeche on June 12.

The disturbance moved erratically over the region for the next several days, before proceeding northward with little development due to unfavorable upper-level winds and land interaction.

Despite this, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) initiated advisories on it as a Potential Tropical Cyclone late on June 17, due to its imminent threat to land.

Baroclinic forcing then caused Claudette to reintensify into a tropical storm over North Carolina early on June 21 before it accelerated into the Atlantic Ocean later that day.

Claudette overall caused minor impacts along the Gulf of Campeche's coastline due to the system stalling in the region as an Invest and a Potential Tropical Cyclone.

Moving erratically over the bight, the system split into two disturbances on either side of Central America, with the southern portion becoming Tropical Storm Dolores.

Over the next few days, the structure of the system changed minimally due to unfavorable upper-level winds and land interaction, although convective activity occurred continuously.

[4][5] However, due to its imminent threat to land, the NHC designated the disturbance as Potential Tropical Cyclone Three at 21:00 UTC that day, and started issuing advisories on it.

[7] Around this time, convection was increasing and a broad curved banding feature developed on the eastern side of the storm, with the NHC describing its structure more resembled that of a subtropical cyclone.

[10] A hurricane hunter flight later that day confirmed the circulation had become well-defined and at 00:00 UTC on June 19, the system became a tropical storm as it already had gale-force wind.

The system reached its peak intensity with winds of 50 mph (85 km/h) and a pressure of 1009 mb (29.80 inHg) as it made landfall in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana 25 nm south-southwest of Houma at 04:30 UTC.

[1] Operationally, the system was not upgraded to a tropical storm until 09:00 UTC, receiving the name Claudette, by which time it was already inland over southeastern Louisiana and weakening.

[1] After crossing the state line into Alabama, Claudette gradually turned east-northeastward and moved through North Georgia into Upstate South Carolina as a tropical depression.

[13] At 06:00 UTC on June 21 however, Claudette restrengthened into a tropical storm while still located over southeastern North Carolina as more organized rainbands formed along and just off the coast.

[1] Claudette emerged over the Western Atlantic Ocean later that day as a tropical storm while embedded within a larger low pressure envelope accelerating to east-northeast, as it began its extratropical transition.

The low continued to move northeastward, before dissipating about 100 nm southeast of the coast of Nova Scotia as it was absorbed into another extratropical storm to the west.

[22] The Chevron Corporation and Occidental Petroleum removed non-essential staff and implemented severe weather protocols on their Gulf of Mexico facilities, some of which are located roughly 150 miles (240 km) offshore Louisiana.

[25][26] In neighboring Alabama, construction crews had to hastily finish repairs on bulkheads in Fairhope and drainage in Downtown Mobile, the former of which was damaged by Hurricanes Sally and Zeta from the previous year.

[27] The Gulf Islands National Seashore in Florida closed down Fort Pickens, issuing a mandatory evacuation for all staff and visitors of the reserve which lasted until noon on June 18.

This was due to concerns of high tides pushing sand onto Fort Pickens Road, creating hostile conditions for usage.

[50] Tropical Storm Claudette produced light to moderate rainfall across much of the Southeastern United States, with locally heavy accumulations in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

[53] Heavy rainfall and strong thunderstorms affected much of Alabama, with the greatest precipitation occurring along two bands in the northern and southern portions of the state.

[61] The strongest winds occurred in southern and coastal counties, with brief periods of sustained gales reported in Dauphin Island and Fort Morgan.

[52] Near Cottondale, a 24-year-old man and his 3-year-old son were killed when a tree loosened by saturated soil fell on their home; winds at the time were estimated at 20–30 mph (30–50 km/h).

[62] Claudette produced a modest storm surge in southeastern Louisiana, owing to weaker onshore winds compared to coastal Mississippi, with peak heights generally remaining below 3 ft (0.91 m).

[78] Claudette's asymmetrical structure led to the strongest winds remaining east of the circulation center and away from Louisiana, despite the core itself crossing the state.

Wind generally remained below tropical storm-force,[1] though some areas in Jefferson, Plaquemines, and St. Tammany parishes observed gusts above this threshold.

[79] Dozens of roads were closed due to high water, with at least 60 vehicles abandoned across the town, and emergency services conducted several high-water rescues.

[1] Effects from Tropical Depression Claudette in Georgia were largely limited to moderate to heavy rain, with the greatest accumulations centered near the Alabama border.

[88] An EF1 tornado caused relatively minor damage, primarily relegated to snapped and uprooted trees, along a 30 mi (48 km) path across rural areas of Early, Clay, and Randolph counties.