Catastrophe struck Central America as two back-to-back Category 4 hurricanes came ashore this past month. Eta and Iota made landfall in the region on November 3rd and November 17th, with impacts stretching from Colombia to Mexico. RedZone previously covered the forecast of the storms, showing the center of the storms hitting Nicaragua. However, damage hit Honduras hardest.
The Storms’ Impact
The storms were the last two named storms of a record-breaking hurricane season, therefore only exacerbated saturated areas. Mudslides are still impacting the region. Aid agencies reported nearly seven million people are currently in need of assistance due to the storms.
While numerous countries were hit, both of the cyclones slowed over Honduras, destroying bridges, roads, and infrastructure. Landslides packed small communities with mud. Thousands of families lost their homes and business to flooding. Shelters are overflowing, while a pandemic continues to impact the same community. The storms caused about 10 billion USD in damages within the country.
One of the hardest hit states was Santa Barbara, with numerous mudslides. The water system of the state completely collapsed.
Relief
President Juan Orlando Hernandez called the back-to-back storms the worst disaster to hit the country. He announced a plan to invest four times the nation’s annual budget on infrastructure and programs to help Hondurans recover.
Numerous NGO, including the Red Cross, deployed to the region due to the storms. However, COVID-19 travel rules and new regulations make it hard to get relief teams to disaster areas. To learn how you can help those impacted, click here.
