Hurricane Dolly due to hit the US/Mexico border by Rob McElwee
Hurricane Dolly has now reached Category One on the Saffir-Simpson scale and is expected to make landfall on the Texas-Mexico coast later today.
As Dolly moved over the very warm waters of the western Gulf of Mexico, it strengthened further and is now generating sustained winds of around 85mph (140km/h). The National Hurricane Centre has warned that Dolly might become a Category Two storm by the time it makes landfall later Wednesday.
A hurricane warning is in effect for the coast of Texas from Brownsville to Corpus Christi and in Mexico from Rio San Fernando northward. Cities and counties in the heavily populated Rio Grande Valley were preparing on Tuesday night, as officials feared torrential rain and storm surges could cause massive flooding and levee breaks. Forecasters are expecting rainfall totals to reach around 380mm (15 inches) in places giving the risk of mudslides.
The approaching hurricane has already caused disruption to air travel with many airlines announcing changes to their timetables today and tomorrow in advance of the storm making landfall.
The National Weather Service said conditions were favourable for tornadoes on Wednesday morning, especially in south Texas and the adjacent coastal waters. In 1967, Hurricane Beulah moved off the Gulf of Mexico into Texas and spawned 115 tornadoes across the state. This set a record for the highest number of tornadoes ever produced by a tropical storm. Beulah also dumped over 900mm (36 inches) of rain in some parts of Texas which led to significant flooding that killed 58 people.
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