Friday, May 27, 2022

One dead, 450 displaced as hurricane Eta slams Honduras

By IANS

Published: Published Date - 11:54 AM, Thu - 5 November 20

Local residents save their belongings at the Alemania suburb, which was flooded by the overflow of the La Arenera stream, due to the heavy rains caused by Hurricane Eta, now degraded to a tropical storm, in the city of El Progreso, department of Yoro, 260 kms north of Tegucigalpa. Eta was expected to hit the eastern part of Honduras, although the exact trajectory of the storm was uncertain.

Teguchigalpa: Hurricane Eta has left at least one person dead and more than 450 others homeless after it slammed Honduras with strong winds and rain, authorities said.

The Permanent Contingency Commission (Copeco) provided an overview of the damage on Wednesday, saying 38 communities were cut off by flooding, seven departments were still on red alert, six rivers overflowed and five bridges collapsed, reports Xinhua news agency.

Copeco spokesperson Marvin Aparicio said about 25 people had been rescued from drowning in raging rivers.

“Although the storm has weakened, it continues to pose a threat to our country, so great caution must be exercised,” Copeco said via Twitter on Wednesday.

Copeco decided to extend a red alert for 48 hours in the northern departments of Cortes and Yoro, and maintain a red alert in Atlantida, Colon and Gracias a Dios, as well as the central islands of Bahia and Olancho.

Eta was expected to hit the eastern part of Honduras, although the exact trajectory of the storm was uncertain.

Copeco said that Eta had weakened into a tropical storm with sustained winds of 112 km per hour.