Hurricane Dolly

Dolly is officially a hurricane as of 5:00 PM Eastern, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph and a minimum central pressure of 986 mb. Forward speed is now 9 mph and expected to slow a bit more.

(Posted via cell phone.)

UPDATE, 10:00 PM EDT: My plane just landed. Dolly’s winds did not increase while I was airborne — she’s still at 75 mph as of the last advisory, at 8pm Eastern — but her pressure dropped to 982 mb, and she’s getting better organized, according to Alan Sullivan at 8:47 PM:

Brownsville radar will be interesting to watch. Right now the core of the storm is still some distance offshore, but it is looking much more organized. The eye is small, and the eyewall is not yet prominent, though radar signal may be getting lost in the outer core. The storm appears to be heading for the mouth of the Rio Grande, and it will really pound the lower Texas coast tomorrow.

Here’s another Brownsville radar link. The next NHC advisory on Dolly will be at 11:00 PM Eastern. Some strengthening is likely overnight.

Landfall is still expected to be around midday tomorrow, near the Texas-Mexico border. There is still some uncertainty in that, though, even at this late date. But that’s the most likely scenario.

P.S. This post will probably be my last update until tomorrow morning. However, to keep things fresh, here is a constantly-updating live radar image of the storm, courtesy of the National Weather Service in Brownsville: