The next tropical storm to develop in the Atlantic will be called storm dolly. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center were watching thunderstorms south of the Cabo Verde Islands on Tuesday evening, and the area could become a tropical depression sometime in the next week.
Marcel Pariseau said Dolly Parton died on Tuesday after “a brief battle with cancer.” He said, “After bravely facing a brief battle with cancer, Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center surrounded by loved ones.”
National Hurricane Center on Tuesday
If the weather system south of the Cabo Verde Islands strengthens further and maximum sustained winds reach at least 39 mph, it would be named Tropical Storm Dolly. Another system far northeast of Bermuda was disorganized on Tuesday and had a poor chance of further development.
The naming sequence comes from procedures set by the World Meteorological Organization. For the Atlantic, the lists are alphabetical, alternate male and female names, and are reused every six years. That is why Arthur, Bertha and Cristobal have already appeared this season before Dolly.
Atlantic names and reuse
Arthur came ashore on the U.S. Gulf Coast in June. Bertha dumped rain in Louisiana and Texas in July. Cristobal formed and quickly dissipated in the Atlantic earlier in August.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecast eight to 14 named storms for the Atlantic hurricane season, along with three to six hurricanes and one to three major hurricanes. It also said one 2025 name has already been retired: Melissa, after a Category 5 hurricane brought devastation to the Caribbean.
Dolly and Tuesday
The timing is not connected to Dolly Parton’s death on Tuesday. The next Atlantic storm name is set by the list, not by events outside the season, and the next system off Africa is the one to watch now.
Will the weather system actually reach Tropical Storm Dolly in the next week? The answer will come from the same place that is already tracking the thunderstorms south of the Cabo Verde Islands.
