The storm “Julia” made landfall in Nicaragua as a hurricane. Wind speeds of up to 140 kilometers per hour were measured when the storm center reached the Caribbean coast of the Central American country near the municipality of Laguna de Perlas on Sunday night (local time), according to the US hurricane center NHC.
Thus “Julia” belonged to the lowest hurricane category 1 of 5. The cyclone then moved west across Nicaragua and also caused heavy rain in other countries in the region.
According to media reports, there were floods in Nicaragua and Honduras. A state of emergency was declared in El Salvador and schools were to remain closed on Monday. According to initial information from Nicaragua’s civil protection agency Sinapred, some roads were blocked by fallen trees. According to official figures, 101 houses were damaged and two were destroyed on the Colombian island of San Andrés, which “Julia” passed close by shortly before Nicaragua.
Flash flood warning
The NHC warned of heavy rain and possible life-threatening flash floods and landslides across Central America and southern Mexico. Julia weakened slightly over Nicaragua and was downgraded to a Tropical Storm. As such, “Julia” is expected to reach Nicaragua’s Pacific coast by Sunday night (local time), the hurricane center said.
The storm was forecast to move along or near the Pacific coasts of Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala on Monday.
The Atlantic hurricane season lasts from June to November. In the past few weeks, two powerful hurricanes, Fiona and Ian, have wreaked havoc in parts of the Caribbean and North America.
Tropical cyclones form over warm ocean water. The number of severe storms is not increasing due to climate change, but the probability is.
