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Hurricane Felix crashes ashore in Central America
2007-09-04
Hurricane Felix smashed ashore in northeastern Nicaragua Tuesday, after swelling into a potentially catastrophic category five storm, the US National Hurricane Center said. Felix was packing fierce winds of 260 kilometers (160 miles) per hour, the center said, and could spawn devastating flooding. Central American authorities evacuated thousands of residents and tourists from the Caribbean coasts as the massive hurricane rekindled bitter memories of Hurricane Mitch, which killed 9,000 people and displaced 2.5 million in the region -- mostly in Honduras -- in 1998. "This system by far does not have the dimensions Hurricane Mitch had, but it still has a lot of power and energy that could cause extremely serious material damage and human loss," Honduran President Manuel Zelaya said. Felix had lost some strength after growing from category two to five in a record 15 hours on Sunday. But it picked up steam throughout the early hours of Tuesday before powering back to reach top intensity. More than 12,000 people in threatened areas of Honduras and Nicaragua were ordered to find shelter as the storm approached. Several hundred tourists were also evacuated aboard boats and planes from the Honduran islands of Roatan and Guanaja, popular with scuba divers. Honduras and Nicaragua, among the poorest countries in the Americas, are especially vulnerable to natural disasters as many homes are built with weak material and are located in flood-prone areas. Felix was expected to make landfall in the tropical forest inhabited by indigenous Miskito people who live in fragile coastal homes. Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital of one million people, issued a red alert, meaning areas vulnerable to mudslides and floods would be evacuated. In northern Honduras, people scrambled to gas stations and supermarkets to stock up on supplies. "We do not know how long supermarkets will be closed after the hurricane," Teresa Nolasco, a 52-year-old teacher, said as she filled the trunk of her car after standing in line for three hours at the supermarket. "We will be listening to the radio and pray, hoping we won't relive another Mitch," she said. In the northern coast town of La Ceiba, seafront restaurants and bars remained open late despite the treat. "We are taking advantage until the last moment, but we will work all night to protect anything that can be damaged," said Mario Guevara, 36, owner of La Palapa restaurant. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said he was cutting short a visit to Panama to lead emergency efforts, while UN and other aid officials said they stood ready to assist. Carlos Scaramella, the World Food Program representative in San Salvador, said the UN agency had enough food stocks to feed 100,000 people for the first five days of an emergency. Mexico, which was already struck last month by Hurricane Dean last month, was threatened by another strong storm on its Pacific coast as Hurricane Henriette bore down on the Baja California peninsula, which is dotted with tourist resorts.
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