Despite widespread rainfall generally ranging from 3 to 5 inches across the Deep South Texas counties of Jim Hogg, Brooks, and Kenedy, the combination of a fairly long duration Extreme (D3) to Exceptional (D4) Drought for most of spring into early summer, along with continued low soil moisture levels, maintained a Severe (D2) Drought designation through the middle of July. Hurricane Dolly's…
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS BRO wrote it up.
Despite widespread rainfall generally ranging from 3 to 5 inches across the Deep South Texas counties of Jim Hogg, Brooks, and Kenedy, the combination of a fairly long duration Extreme (D3) to Exceptional (D4) Drought for most of spring into early summer, along with continued low soil moisture levels, maintained a Severe (D2) Drought designation through the middle of July. Hurricane Dolly's torrential rains, arriving on July 23rd and finishing on the 24th, would end the Drought of 2008.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Brownsville, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 7, 7:05 PM CST, 4 hours 55 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX 805 PM CDT MON JUL 7 2008 .DISCUSSION...CURRENT KBRO DOPPLER SHOWS CONVECTION WANING IN THE WRN VLY AND OVR THE ADJ GULF WATERS OF DEEP S TX. AFTER SEVERAL DAYS OF STEADY...DROUGHT-RELIEVING...HEAVY RAINS...MANY AREAS OF THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY RECEIVED FROM 2 TO 4 INCHES OF RAINFALL TODAY. THIS ADDITIONAL RAINFALL CAUSED SOME FLOODED ROADWAYS AND FLOODING OF LOW LYING AREAS IN THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY. SOME RAINFALL AMOUNTS RECEIVED IN THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY SINCE JULY FIRST INCLUDE 4.32 INCHES IN BROWNSVILLE...4.19 INCHES IN EDINBURG...4.02 INCHES IN PORT ISABEL AND 2.95 INCHES IN HARLINGEN. HARLINGEN WAS RUNNING A RAINFALL DEFICIT OF 7.20 INCHES ON JULY SECOND AND...AFTER OUR TORRENTIAL RAINS DURING THE PAST SEVERAL DAYS...IS NOW JUST 2.02 INCHES UNDER NORMAL. BROWNSVILLE WAS 4.74 INCHES UNDER RAINFALL NORMS ON JULY SECOND...AND NOW HAS A SURPLUS OF 0.06 INCH. THERE IS A 70 PERCENT CHANCE FOR RAIN...SOME HEAVY AT TIMES...ON BOTH TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. THERE IS THE POSSIBILITY OF ADDITIONAL RAINFALL TOTALS OF 2 TO 3 INCHES IN THE AREAS ALREADY SATURATED IN OUR REGION. MINOR FLOODING AND PERHAPS THE NEED FOR FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS MAY BE NECESSARY DURING THE NEXT TWO DAYS. NO CHANGES NEEDED TO CURRENT DEEP S TX ZNS. && .PREV DISCUSSION...DROUGHT BUSTER INDEED RECORD BREAKER MAY BE THE FINAL ANSWER IN SOME LOCATIONS...WHERE BY THE END OF THIS AFTERNOON EXPECT PARTS OF CAMERON TO HAVE EXCEEDED 10 INCHES SO FAR...IN JULY ALONE PRETTY BIG NUMBERS CONSIDERING THIS IS STILL IN THE EARLY SUMMER DRY SEASON HERE. FOR THE REST OF THE AFTERNOON...WILL CONTINUE TO RIDE THE CURRENT TRENDS BUT AS EVENING APPROACHES THINGS SHOULD TAPER OFF AS THEY HAVE IN RECENT DAYS...BACK TO AREAS OF LIGHT RAIN THEN TO ISOLATED SHOWERS...AND PERHAPS ENDING ALTOGETHER ACROSS THE EASTERN THIRD OF THE AREA. THAT SAID...ACTIVITY MAY GET GOING AGAIN LATE TONIGHT INTO EARLY TUESDAY ACROSS THE WESTERN ZONES AS THE BACK EDGE OF THE DEEPER MOISTURE HOLDS TIGHT TO THE RIVER AS THE 500 MB SHEAR AXIS WHICH HAS BEEN THE CULPRIT FOR TODAYS RAIN TRAIN EDGES A BIT FARTHER INTO MEXICO. STILL...NOT EXPECTING MUCH RAIN TOTALS BETWEEN SUNSET AND SUNRISE...AND THE EASTERN SECTIONS WILL LIKELY STAY DRY. AS FOR TUESDAY...THE DIFFERENCE IN DIVERGENCE SHOULD BE ENOUGH TO CHANGE THE NATURE OF THE EVOLUTION OF THE DAYS WEATHER. UNLIKE TODAY...WHERE A SHARP 250 MB DEFORMATION AXIS IS LITERALLY SITTING OVER THE VALLEY AND HAS MAXIMIZED THE LIFT THROUGHOUT THE ATMOSPHERE...ON TUESDAY...250 MB WIND SHIFT DECIDEDLY TO THE NORTH AND INCREASE IN SPEED. WHILE THERE IS STILL A DECENT AMOUNT OF DIVERGENCE IN THE MORNING...THE DEEP LAYER FORCING IS SUBTLY PUSHED WEST AND WEAKENED. THATS NOT TO SAY WELL HAVE ISSUES...AS MORNING SOUNDINGS WILL REMAIN JUICED AND ANY RISE IN TEMPERATURE TO TRIGGER VALUES (MID 80S OR SO) WHICH COULD ALLOW RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF MORE CELLULAR TYPE THUNDERSTORMS...AND THE DAY COULD EVOLVE SIMILAR TO A WEEK AGO (JULY 1) WHERE IN CAMERON COUNTY OLMITO HAD NEARLY 3 INCHES WHILE LOCATIONS JUST 10 MILES TO THE SOUTHEAST HAD VIRTUALLY NO RAIN. SO...DESPITE THE NUMEROUS WORDING AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN...THE EXPECTATION FOR LESS TRAINING AND MORE CELLULAR WILL KEEP THE FLOOD WATCH ISSUANCE AT BAY. BUT WILL CONTINUE TO HAMMER IN SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENTS AND HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...AS WELL AS ON OUR WEBSITE IN TOP NEWS...FOR THE POTENTIAL OF LOCAL FLOODING WITH ANY STRONG CELL THAT DEVELOPS. THEREAFTER...WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO CLOSE OUT THIS WEEK OF WIDESPREAD RAIN AS DEEP LAYER DRYING BEGINS TO EDGE INTO THE AREA FROM THE EAST. FOR NOW...WILL CONTINUE WITH A LOW END (60 PERCENT) NUMEROUS WORDING FOR WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON GIVEN RESIDUAL DEEP LAYER MOISTURE ACTIVATED BY HEATING WITH LITTLE FOCUSING...THEN FURTHER DOWN THE SCALE TO HIGH END SCATTERED THURSDAY...AND HOPEFULLY TO ISOLATED MAINLY AFTERNOON ACTIVITY OVER THE WEEKEND AS MEAN LAYER RELATIVE HUMIDITY FALLS BELOW 40 PERCENT...ASSUMING THE IDEA OF A FLAT RIDGE AND MORE CLIMATOLOGICAL DRY AIR SETTLES ACROSS THE VALLEY. WITH THE DRIER AIR WILL COME THE HOTTER TEMPERATURES...ALBEIT SLOWLY AS THINGS START TO DRY OUT. CLEAR NIGHTS MAY PROMOTE SOME FOG LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT/EARLY THURSDAY AND AGAIN THURSDAY NIGHT/EARLY FRIDAY...BUT NOT WORTH MENTIONING AT THIS POINT. && .MARINE...AT 7 PM BUOY 42020 REPORTED SOUTHEAST WINDS AT 12 TO 16 KNOTS WITH SEAS 5.9 FEET AT 7 SECONDS. WINDS AND SEAS WILL SLOWLY DECREASE THROUGH THE WEEKEND AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS INTO THE AREA. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL DOMINATE THE AREA ON TUESDAY AND DECREASE BY THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK INTO THE WEEKEND. && .AVIATION...VFR CONDITIONS SHOULD PREVAIL TONIGHT WITH TEMPO MVFR IN SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS DURING THE DAY ON TUESDAY. WINDS WILL BE LIGHT TO MODERATE FROM THE SOUTHEAST THROUGH THE NEXT 24 HOURS. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... BAYVIEW/PORT ISABEL 78 85 78 86 / 30 70 20 40 BROWNSVILLE 77 86 76 88 / 30 70 20 60 HARLINGEN 75 86 74 90 / 30 70 20 60 MCALLEN 74 86 74 90 / 60 70 20 60 RIO GRANDE CITY 74 86 75 91 / 60 70 30 40 SOUTH PADRE ISLAND 80 83 78 84 / 20 70 20 40 && .BRO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... TX...NONE. GM...NONE. && THIS PRODUCT IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON THE WEB AT: HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/BROWNSVILLE SYNOPTIC/GRIDS...58/PHILO AVIATION/MARINE...65/FLATT
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX 429 PM CDT MON JUL 7 2008 TXZ248>257-082130- ZAPATA-JIM HOGG-BROOKS-KENEDY-STARR-HIDALGO-INLAND WILLACY- INLAND CAMERON-COASTAL WILLACY-COASTAL CAMERON- 429 PM CDT MON JUL 7 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR DEEP SOUTH TEXAS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. SCATTERED SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS...MAINLY DURING THE DAYTIME HOURS CAUSING LOCALIZED FLOODING AND POOR VISIBILITIES. DRIVERS SHOULD USE EXTREME CAUTION WHEN TRAVELING TO THEIR DESTINATIONS. THERE IS A MODERATE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS AT THE BEACHES OF SOUTH PADRE ISLAND AND BOCA CHICA. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. GMZ130-132-135-150-155-170-175-082130- LAGUNA MADRE FROM THE PORT OF BROWNSVILLE TO THE ARROYO COLORADO- LAGUNA MADRE FROM THE ARROYO COLORADO TO 5 NM NORTH OF PORT MANSFIELD TX- LAGUNA MADRE FROM 5 NM NORTH OF PORT MANSFIELD TO BAFFIN BAY TX- COASTAL WATERS FROM PORT MANSFIELD TO THE RIO GRANDE OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM BAFFIN BAY TO PORT MANSFIELD OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM PORT MANSFIELD TO THE RIO GRANDE EXTENDING FROM 20 TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM BAFFIN BAY TO PORT MANSFIELD EXTENDING FROM 20 TO 60 NM- 429 PM CDT MON JUL 7 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE GULF OF MEXICO AND THE LAGUNA MADRE. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. SHOWERS WITH EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CREATE HIGHER SEAS AND WINDS FOR SMALL BOATERS TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. SHOWERS WITH EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CREATE HIGHER SEAS AND WINDS FOR SMALL BOATERS TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY WITH ACTIVITY DIMINISHING THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Early month (July 1st to 8th) rainfall of 2 to 4 inches was not enough to reduce the initial Extreme (D3) Drought below Severe (D2) levels for Brooks County. These conditions would continue until the arrival of Hurricane Dolly on the 23rd, whose rains would finish the Drought of 2008.
Early month (July 1st to 8th) rainfall of 3 to 6 inches was not enough to reduce the initial Extreme (D3) Drought below Severe (D2) levels for Kenedy County through mid July. These conditions would continue until the arrival of Hurricane Dolly on the 23rd, whose rains would finish the Drought of 2008.
Early month (July 1st to 8th) rainfall of 3 to 6 inches was not enough to reduce the initial Extreme (D3) Drought below Severe (D2) levels for Jim Hogg County through mid July. These conditions would continue until the arrival of Hurricane Dolly on the 23rd, whose rains would finish the Drought of 2008.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, July 2008
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 128168, 128169, 128170.