The National Hurricane Center said Friday that the short-lived Tropical Storm Dolly had broken up to become simply a tropical wave as it moved toward the Caribbean. As of the NHC’s 11 a.m. advisory, what remained of Dolly was located about 1,000 miles east of the Leeward Islands and was moving west at 25 mph. It still had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph, but had lost its circulation. “According to the forecast, the remnants should approach the Leeward Islands on Saturday night and Sunday,” forecasters said. “Winds associated with the remnants of Dolly are expected to decrease below tropical storm strength on Saturday.” Tropical storm-force winds extend up to 115 miles from its center. The system is still forecast to bring heavy rain that could affect the Leeward areas from Saturday night into Sunday, then the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and Hispaniola from Sunday into Monday. “These heavy rains may produce flash flooding in areas of higher terrain in the Leeward Islands,” forecasters said. The first warning came at 11 a.m. Thursday, so Tropical Storm Dolly lasted only 24 hours. ‘Pure coincidence’: Tropical Storm Dolly’s name has nothing to do with Dolly Parton’s death, NHC says The name Dolly had many people wondering if it had anything to do with the death this week of beloved entertainer Dolly Parton. The NHC said that was not the case. “The timing of the use of the name Dolly for this storm is purely coincidental,” meteorologists noted in the NHC Tropical Discussion. “Tropical storm and hurricane names for the North Atlantic basin originate from six predetermined rotating lists established by the World Meteorological Organization Region IV Hurricane Committee.” He said the name Dolly had replaced Diana after the 1990 hurricane season and was first used in 1996. Dolly becomes the fourth named storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season after tropical storms Arthur, Bertha and Cristobal. Hurricane season began June 1 and runs through November 30, but the peak of hurricane season runs from mid-August to mid-October. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration updated its seasonal forecast earlier this month and now expects between seven and 13 named storms this year. Of those, between two and six would become hurricanes. He also predicted there might not be any major hurricanes this year, or at most two. 2026 was already forecast to have below-average storm generation, and that has been reduced even further with the latest forecasts from NOAA and other weather groups. An average year would see 14 named storms and seven hurricanes, three of which would grow to Category 3 or higher.
