Early Saturday, tropical storm Iota was emerging, threatening a second tropical strike for Nicaragua and Honduras, the countries most recently devastated by Hurricane 4, Eta.
Ayota already has a record setting system, named the 30th hurricane of this year’s extraordinary Atlantic hurricane season. Such activity has focused on climate change, which scientists say is causing wetter, stronger and more destructive storms.
This was the 28th hurricane to hit the record in 2005. Theta, 29, was weakening in the far east-east Atlantic Ocean on Saturday and is expected to remain low, forecasters said.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Iota could bring dangerous winds, storm surges and up to 30in of rain to Nicaragua and Honduras as early as Monday. The formation of the system on Friday afternoon.
Early Saturday, Hurricane Kingston was located about 340 miles south-southeast of Jamaica and had a maximum sustained wind of 40 mph. There were no marine warnings or clocks. Iota was going west-southwest from 5 mpf.
It could wreak havoc in an area where people are still reeling from the aftermath. That system hit Nicaragua in the category last week, with torrential rains causing floods and landslides in parts of Central America and Mexico.
On Saturday morning, Guatemalan officials said 10 people were buried in mudslides in the state of Chikimula near the Honduran border. Emergency workers have rescued two people and recovered three bodies. Five people are still missing.
In the central Guatemalan region of Alta Verapaz, last week’s mudslide on the village of Quiza came after a partial collapse of a mountain, in which dozens of residents lived and were buried.
President Alejandro Giammette on Saturday expressed concern about Iota’s approach, saying he had ordered evacuations for areas expected to be affected.
“We are concerned about the area of Alta Verapaz and Quiche. We believe these are the areas where we can be most affected, “said Giamtetti. “We hope God will help us.”
In Honduras, where Eta killed 64 people and damaged roads, bridges and crops, President Juan Orlando Hernandez on Saturday called for evacuation of nearby shelters.
“Iota will put our lives and our economy in danger again,” he said.
Residents of the Cruz de Valencia community in northwestern Honduras have begun migrating.
“We have to get out, we have to save our own lives,” said resident Eric Gomez, who said he only survived the last hurricane by sticking to a tree to avoid being swept away by the flowing water.
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