Dolly Links:
Latest Advisory | NWS: Projected Path | Interactive Tracking Map

HARLINGEN, Texas (AP) -- Business at reopened restaurants was humming, grocery store parking lots were packed and residents of south Texas were venturing out on the newly dry roads again as the remnants of Hurricane Dolly moved well away from the Rio Grande Valley.

But thousands were still without power Thursday and cleanup was ongoing following the Category 2 storm. Officials also warned that Dolly's aftereffects were not necessarily gone for good.

Downed power lines remained the greatest danger. One person in Matamoros, Mexico, died from electrocution after walking past a power line on the ground.

Fallen billboards and business signs still littered the streets, but residents were out and about after hunkering down for most of Wednesday. As the sun peeked through dark clouds, people began cleaning up and expressed relief that the storm didn't take many lives.

"We're all OK," said Hilario Cruz as he chopped up a felled tree that just missed his pickup truck in Harlingen. "We covered the windows. The water was up to our knees yesterday."

There will be substantial cleanup: President Bush declared 15 counties in south Texas a disaster area to release federal funding to them, and insurance estimators put the losses at $750 million.

By Thursday afternoon, forecasters downgraded Dolly to a tropical depression. The storm, which brought 100 mph winds, was expected to break up by Friday. It left behind more than a foot of rain in some areas and broke all-time July rainfall records in the Lower Rio Grande Valley.

But with Dolly long gone, 159,000 people in the region were still without power at 10 p.m. EDT Thursday, according to Gov. Rick Perry's office. The figure was down from 228,000 earlier in the day.

Steve McCraw, the state's homeland security director, said about 1,500 workers were on hand to help restore power and seven stations were distributing water, ice, food and hygiene kits.

An aerial view of the Rio Grande Valley showed fields forming a checkerboard pattern, some inundated with water, others spared. Traffic was moving again in most places, but some residential areas were surrounded by floodwaters and debris was strewn across lawns.

Perry, who flew over the area Thursday with U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, cautioned residents not to rest easy just yet.

"It appears that we have handled it as well as it can be handled. But it is far from over," Perry said, noting possible flooding over the next five days from runoff as the storm moves northward.

Sen. Cornyn said Dolly should remind the federal government that it needs to fund levee improvements along the Rio Grande.

"We're lucky Mother Nature didn't deal us a harsher blow," Cornyn said.

After crashing ashore on South Padre Island midday Wednesday, Dolly meandered north, leaving towns on the northern tip of the Rio Grande Valley with a surprise. Officials had feared the Rio Grande levees would breach, but the storm veered from its predicted path and they held strong.

"We're glad it didn't make a direct hit but it just refocuses on the issues we have," said Cameron County Judge Carlos Cascos. "The levees are suspect. Nothing's changed in my opinion."

While the area near the border that expected the bulk of the storm was counting its blessings, residents a little farther north were wondering what hit them.

In the La Quinta section of San Benito, flooding is routine as rain normally drives torrents of water off a nearby expressway and pool around raised railroad beds.

But they said Thursday they'd never seen anything like this.

One subsidized housing project will likely have to be torn down, having just barely survived three or four other floods, said Arnold Padilla, the city's housing director.

"If it was salvageable at all, it would be three or four months before it was livable," Padilla said.

The raised railroad tracks that define the neighborhood became the vantage point, boat launch and the only dry ground around.

Residents waded through waist-deep brown water with a few belongings wrapped in plastic bags held high in a sad caravan of Dolly's displaced.

A bit farther northwest in Harlingen, Joanna Nunez was considering how to fix the new hole in her roof. She said that not long after the storm had torn away the chunk, a neighbor boy staying at her house asked if he could go outside to see Dolly.

"I told him, 'We are outside,"' she said, smiling and looking at the hole.

Rain and wind from Dolly probably doomed much of the cotton crop in Texas' Rio Grande Valley. About 92,000 acres of cotton in the region were awaiting harvest but driving rains and high winds knocked bolls to the ground, making them unsalvageable, Texas Agri Life Extension agent Rod Santa Ana said. Sorghum acres damaged by rain in early July also could be doomed, he said.

A remnant of the storm on Thursday blew several roofs off houses and businesses on San Antonio's south side, about 300 miles northwest of where the storm made landfall. There were no immediate reports of injuries and the National Weather Service sent a storm survey team to determine whether it was a tornado or strong winds.

On South Padre Island, which endured the worst of Dolly's wrath, power could be out for another day, said town spokeswoman Melissa Zamora. A 9 p.m. curfew was set for the second night in row Thursday, and the National Guard and FEMA were distributing ice, water and food.

South Padre Island officials said no buildings were in danger of collapse, but damage was widespread to hotels and other businesses. There were no dollar estimates on damage yet.

Avi Fima was mourning the damage to "my baby" -- his Surf Stop store on Padre Boulevard. Windows were blown out, half the roof was torn away and water bubbled up the carpeting inside.

"This is going to hit us good," Fima said. "We actually started summer really good. ... To rebuild it -- the season will be over. We have a month left."

Across the Rio Grande in Matamoros, Mexico, power was restored to large parts of Brownsville's sister city, and Tamaulipas Gov. Eugenio Hernandez said he hoped the lights would be on by the end of the day.

Gas stations and factories reopened as about 2,500 police and soldiers patrolled to prevent looting while many of the 13,000 people who had taken shelter returned home.

The last hurricane to hit the U.S. was the fast-forming Humberto, which came ashore in southeast Texas last September.

The busiest part of the Atlantic hurricane season is usually in August and September. So far this year, there have been four named storms, two of which became hurricanes. Federal forecasters predict a total of 12 to 16 named storms and six to nine hurricanes this season.

A NOAA Satellite image of "Dolly." Click on the image for a closer look. Track the Storm

Dolly Links:
Latest Advisory | NWS: Projected Path | Interactive Tracking Map

HARLINGEN, Texas (AP) -- Forecasters say Dolly has weakened to a tropical depression with 35 mph winds as it moves north over Texas.

Dolly was expected to break up by Friday, and was centered about 35 miles south of Eagle Pass at 5 p.m. EDT.

Residents across south Texas slogged through knee-deep muddy waters, tiptoed around downed power lines and dug through debris but were thankful that the storm didn't pack the wallop they had feared. The downed power lines remained the greatest danger. Rain and wind from Dolly probably doomed much of the cotton crop in Texas' Rio Grande Valley.

NBC News has received an update on the damage to South Padre Island.

Gary Ainsworth, the Police Information Officer for South Padre Island says just about every structure has damage; he calls the damage "extensive" and says the area won't know the extent of the damage for another few hours. A quick drive through the community shows ots of damaged roofs, and blown in windows.

Ainsworth says there was no real flooding, just a lot of standing water. He says the three main roads are all fine, the main bridge on and off the island is back open..

The water is back on -- but authorities recommending boiling before consuming.

Electricity is still off across the barrier island.

NBC Weather Plus meteorologist spoke with Samantha Davies Thursday morning about some of the damage he's seen since daybreak, in the South Padre Island area. Hurricane Dolly made landfall in that area Wednesday afternoon.

RAW Video from South Padre Island
We've receive two clips of what it looked like on South Padre Island Wednesday as Hurricane Dolly was making landfall. Click on the video players to watch the dramatic footage.

Further north, in Corups Christi, some surfers enjoyed the large surf created by the powerful winds of Dolly.

Our on-the-site Meteorologist, Jeff Ranieri, has the latest pictures from the eye of the storm. Take a look...

Also, hear from Jeff about the conditions near the storm:

Check out these photos of Hurricane Dolly:

As we continue to monitor the latest advances made by Hurricane Dolly, we are capturing footage of the damages done to certain areas of southern Texas. Here is a video provided by NBC News Channel of the high gusts and heavy rain that are devastating towns in Texas:

Hurricane Dolly is approaching the coast of Texas with 100 mil-per-hour winds and higher gusts. The storm is likely to impact areas from Brownsville to Corpus Cristi, and northern sections of Mexico including Rio San Fernando. Dolly has recently upgraded to a Category 2 hurricane and is expected to bring up to 15 inches of rainfall to the southern portions of Texas.

Here is the latest Tropical Update on Hurricane Dolly, as of 11am ET....

At 1230 PM CDT, the southwest eyewall of Hurricane Dolly was raking the City of South Padre Island, Port Isabel, and Boca Chica Beach as the center makes landfall over unpopulated South Padre Island near the Cameron and Willacy County line. Doppler radar indicated a swath of more than 100 mph winds, some which may be sustained, and damage reports are coming into the office including blown out windows at high rises, and roof damage at the Habitat Condominium. Power has been out across the Island for most of the daylight hours, and additional power outages are likely in Cameron and Willacy County through this evening. A report from a fishing captain indicated an estimate of west winds of 100 mph.

Just to the north of landfall, near Port Mansfield, a storm surge up to 6 feet is likely to cause minor to moderate coastal flooding there. Gusty winds to near 80 mph along the western edge of the eyewall are expected there with additional damage expected. It is likely that millions of dollars in property damage will be incurred between Port Isabel and especially on South Padre Island when Dolly's impacts are assessed over the coming days and weeks. All residents should continue to hunker down in sturdy shelter especially in Cameron and Willacy County for the remainder of the afternoon. Some preliminary wind values at local airports, as well as rainfall totals, are shown below.
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THE FOLLOWING ARE PRELIMINARY RAINFALL TOTALS FROM TODAY DUE TO HURRICANE DOLLY

CITY/TOWN            COUNTY            RAINFALL (INCHES)
AIRPORTS (THROUGH 11 AM TODAY):
WESLACO/MID COUNTY   HIDALGO            0.51
HARLINGEN/VALLEY     CAMERON            1.68
BROWNSVILLE/INTL     CAMERON            2.15
EDINBURG             HIDALGO            0.14
MCALLEN/MILLER       HIDALGO            0.28
PORT ISABEL/BAYVIEW  CAMERON            2.27

THE FOLLOWING ARE PRELIMINARY PEAK SUSTAINED WINDS AND WIND GUSTS
DUE TO HURRICANE DOLLY

CITY/TOWN            COUNTY             WIND
AIRPORTS (THROUGH 11 AM TODAY):
PORT ISABEL/BAYVIEW  CAMERON            57 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 70
HARLINGEN/VALLEY     CAMERON            44 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 64
BROWNSVILLE/INTL     CAMERON            46 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 64
RINCON (TCOON)       KENEDY             40 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 48
BAYVIEW (TCOON)      CAMERON            42 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 54
MCALLEN/MILLER       HIDALGO            26 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 36
BUOY020                                 38 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 47

As of 9am ET, winds in the Brownsville area were gusting to nearly 60 mph, as reported at the S. Padre Island international airport.

NBC Weather Plus Meteorologist Jeff Ranieri experienced those winds first hand as he was speaking with Samantha Davies. Watch watch happens to him toward  the end of the report.

Here's Jeff's Report....

Here is the latest Tropical Update from Weather Plus...