Hurricane Felix hits Nicaragua
Tens of thousands of people flee as “potentially catastrophic” storm makes landfall.
Looming disaster
Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale |
Category 2 – Winds 154-177kph Category 3 – Winds 178-209kph Category 4 – Winds 210-249kph Category 5 – Winds 249kph or higher |
Manuel Zelaya, the Honduran president said: “There could be serious damage … like human losses, if people do not take precautionary measures.”
Hundreds of tourists were flown to the Honduran mainland from beach and diving resorts on the Bay islands.
Police have also reported long lines at supermarkets and gas stations in coastal cities as residents stocked up on food, water and fuel.
A storm surge of up to 5.5m is expected.
Emergency workers have sailed thousands of Miskito Indians out of sparsely populated, coastal areas near the border.
Aircraft have been shuttling hundreds of tourists from the island resorts of Honduras and Belize in a desperate airlift.
Grupo Taca Airlines provided special free flights to the mainland, touching down and then taking off again as swiftly as possible to pick up more tourists.
Residents stock up on supplies as Felix nears [AFP] |
About 1,000 people were evacuated from the Honduran island of Roatan, popular for its pristine reefs and diving resorts.
Meanwhile, tropical storm Henriette that is headed towards Mexico, has formed into a hurricane with winds of 120kph, the US National Hurricane Centre reported.
Henriette is now a category one hurricane, the lowest on a five-level scale, and is set to approach the southern Baja peninsula in Mexico.
The storm had killed six people last week in the resort city of Acapulco.
Mexico was hit by Hurricane Dean last month, which had killed 12 people, after killing 17 people across the Carribean islands.