The National Hurricane Center was tracking a tropical wave in the Atlantic that had a 70% chance of becoming a tropical storm or depression, with Tropical Storm Dolly 2026 possible by Aug. 27. If the system strengthens as projected, it would become the fourth-named storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season.
Dolly Parton died on Aug. 25, adding an unusual public coincidence to a name that was already on the Atlantic list. The storm name Dolly was chosen 30 years ago, long before her death, and the center does not control when names are used.
Atlantic storm names
Names for storms in the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific come from six rotating alphabetical lists maintained by a meteorological organization committee, and the lists repeat every seventh year. The Atlantic hurricane committee can retire a name after a storm is so severe, with deaths and damage, that using it again would be insensitive.
At least 100 names have been retired from the Atlantic list. Dolly was added to the rotating list in 1996 to replace Diana, the Category 2 hurricane that struck Mexico in 1990 and killed 139 people.
Dolly on the list
Dolly has been assigned to a storm three times during Dolly Parton's lifetime. It was last used for a tropical storm in 2020, and Hurricane Dolly peaked as a Category 2 hurricane in 2008 before striking the southeastern tip of Texas as a Category 1 and bringing much-needed drought relief to the region.
The name's return this season does not reflect the singer's death. It reflects the fixed naming system already in place for the Atlantic, where names move in order until a storm is strong enough to receive one.
Roger Edwards reaction
Roger Edwards, a meteorologist and long-time Dolly Parton fan, posted a tribute describing the timing as "an \"astounding coincidence\"." Parton had also been involved in relief efforts after wildfires in 2016, after flooding in Waverly, Tennessee in 2021, and after Helene swept across the southeastern United States in 2024.
In 2024, she announced a $1 million personal donation to relief efforts after flooding in North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee and said her businesses would pledge another $1 million to match it. During that announcement, she briefly sang a modified lyric to Jolene, a detail that added to the attention now surrounding the storm name.
The National Hurricane Center said it does not control storm naming or when names are used, so the only immediate question is whether the wave reaches tropical storm or depression status by Aug. 27. If it does, Dolly will be the name it receives.
