Hurricane Dora
Later on September 7, Dora re-strengthened into a Category 3 hurricane. Approaching the east coast of Florida, Dora's motion became erratic, making a few cyclonic loops. Around 04:00 UTC on September 10, the hurricane made landfall near St. Augustine, Florida, with winds of 115 mph (185 km/h). Two hours later, Dora weakened to a Category 2 hurricane. However, deterioration then slowed, with the hurricane falling to tropical storm intensity over Jefferson County on September 11. Dora then briefly drifted over southwestern Georgia, until turned east-northeastward late the next day. Early on September 14, the storm re-emerged into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, and transitioned into an extratropical cyclone several hours later. The remnants of Dora moved rapidly northeastward and dissipated offshore Newfoundland early on September 16.
1976 Atlantic hurricane season
Threatening much of the East Coast of the United States, hurricane warnings were issued from Georgia to Maine. An estimated 500,000 people evacuated coastal areas accordingly. Five people lost their lives in a car accident on a rain-slicked highway near the North Carolina–Virginia state line; another person died due to a car accident in Norfolk, Virginia. In New York, damage on Long Island reached $8 million, of which $3 million stemmed from erosion at Rockaway Beach. One person was killed in New York when a branch snapped off a tree due to high winds and fell on her. Approximately 36,000 residents in the lower Hudson Valley lost electricity. In Connecticut, strong winds in Bridgeport downed trees, which fell on barns, porches, and homes. About 247,000 people lost electricity throughout the state. Three deaths occurred in Connecticut, one from an accident caused by slippery roads and the other two from carbon monoxide poisoning from a generator. Flooding was reported across New England and was especially severe in Vermont. The hardest hit town was Chester, where 35 of its 85 roads flooded and 5 bridges were washed out. Two people died in Huntington after the footbridge they were crossing collapsed into the Huntington River. A total of 12 people lost their lives and damage reached an estimated $100 million. In Canada, heavy rains fell across New Brunswick, amounting to in Edmundston, triggering flooding that damaged crops, homes, and roads. Damage estimates reached at least $1 million.
An area of low pressure in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico developed into a tropical depression early on August 18. The depression drifted east and northeastward over the next day, before beginning to accelerate on August 19. The cyclone further intensified into Tropical Storm Dottie by 12:00 UTC. Shortly thereafter, Dottie made landfall in Florida over mainland Monroe County. The cyclone quickly proceeded northeastward before re-emerging into the Atlantic near Palm Beach. Dottie moved northward and peaked with winds of 50 mph (85 km/h) at 06:00 UTC on August 20, before subsequently weakening due to wind shear. By the time Dottie made landfall in Charleston, South Carolina, early on August 21, it was barely of tropical storm intensity. It deteriorated into a tropical depression on August 21 and dissipated shortly thereafter. The remnant low pressure system turned southward and once again entered the Atlantic before turning westward and crossing the Florida peninsula.