More than 1,700 Honduran communities remain cut off after Tropical Storm Sara dumped unprecedented rainfall across the Central American nation, destroying bridges and triggering landslides in a disaster that has affected more than 110,000 people.
The slow-moving storm, which formed Thursday in the Caribbean Sea, pounded northern Honduras for four consecutive days, dropping up to 500mm (19.7 inches) of rain before moving toward Belize and Mexico’s Quintana Roo state, where forecasters expect it to weaken Monday.
Honduran emergency services report nine bridges destroyed and 19 others damaged by swollen rivers, while numerous highways have become impassable due to landslides. The destruction has left more than 2,500 homes damaged and over 200 completely destroyed.
President Xiomara Castro’s early warning Thursday urged residents near rivers to evacuate, prompting thousands to seek shelter before the worst of the flooding. Officials have confirmed one death while continuing to assess the full scope of the disaster.
Sara marks the Atlantic hurricane season’s 18th named storm and third this month, following Hurricane Rafael’s recent devastation of Cuba’s power grid. Scientists attribute the intensity of these storms to unusually high sea surface temperatures.
“While hurricanes and tropical storms occur naturally, human-caused climate change is supercharging them and exacerbating the risk of major damage,” said Kevin Trenberth, distinguished scholar at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado.
REUTERS
