Hurricane Felix was an extremely powerful Category 5

Atlantic hurricane An Atlantic hurricane, also known as tropical storm or simply hurricane, is a tropical cyclone that forms in the Atlantic Ocean, primarily between the months of June and November. A hurricane differs from a cyclone or typhoon only on the basis of ...

which was the southernmost-landfalling Category 5 storm on record, surpassing Hurricane Edith of

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

. It was the sixth named

storm A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmos ...

, second hurricane, and second

Category 5 hurricane Category, plural categories, may refer to: Philosophy and general uses * Categorization, categories in cognitive science, information science and generally *Category of being * ''Categories'' (Aristotle) *Category (Kant) *Categories (Peirce) * ...

of the

2007 Atlantic hurricane season The 2007 Atlantic hurricane season was the first season since 2003 to feature tropical activity both before and after the official bounds of the season. There were an above-average number of named storms during the season15, however many storms w ...

. Felix formed from a

tropical wave A tropical wave (also called easterly wave, tropical easterly wave, and African easterly wave), in and around the Atlantic Ocean, is a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which ...

on August 31, passing through the southern

Windward Islands french: Îles du Vent , image_name = , image_caption = ''Political'' Windward Islands. Clockwise: Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. , image_alt = , locator_map = , location = Caribbean SeaNorth ...

on September 1 before strengthening to attain hurricane status. On the next day, Felix rapidly strengthened into a major hurricane, and early on September 3 it was upgraded to Category 5 status; at 2100 UTC on the same day, the hurricane was downgraded to Category 4 status, but strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane for the second and final time by the morning of September 4. On September 4, Felix made

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

just south of the border between

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

and

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

, causing at least 133 deaths and hundreds of millions of dollars in damages in Central America. Because of its devastating impact on Central America, especially on Nicaragua, its name was retired after the 2007 season.

Meteorological history

moved off the coast of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

on August 24, tracking westward at approximately 14 mph (23 km/h) with no associated deep

convection Convection is single or multiphase fluid flow that occurs spontaneously due to the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoyancy). When the cause of the convec ...

and a weak low-level inverted-V curvature. Initially difficult to locate on

satellite A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotope ...

s, the wave axis tracked through a moist environment and developed an area of scattered thunderstorms. By August 25 visible satellite imagery indicated broad cyclonic turning just north of the

Intertropical Convergence Zone The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ ), known by sailors as the doldrums or the calms because of its monotonous windless weather, is the area where the northeast and the southeast trade winds converge. It encircles Earth near the thermal e ...

. The wave continued to develop moderate to strong convection, and on August 27 a 1012

mbar The bar is a metric unit of pressure, but not part of the International System of Units (SI). It is defined as exactly equal to 100,000 Pa (100 kPa), or slightly less than the current average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea leve ...

(

hPa HPA may refer to: Organizations * Harry Potter Alliance, a charity * Halifax Port Authority, Canada * Hamburg Port Authority, Germany * Hawaii Preparatory Academy, a school in Hawaii, US * Health Protection Agency, UK * Heerespersonalamt, the Ger ...

; 29.88

inHg Inch of mercury (inHg and ″Hg) is a non- SI unit of measurement for pressure. It is used for barometric pressure in weather reports, refrigeration and aviation in the United States. It is the pressure exerted by a column of mercury in heigh ...

)

low pressure area In meteorology, a low-pressure area, low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with inclement weather (such as cloudy, windy, with possible ...

developed about 830 mi (1,340 km) west-southwest of

Praia Praia (, Portuguese language, Portuguese for "beach") is the capital and largest city of Cape Verde.

Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

. For the next several days the system failed to organize significantly; however, on August 30 the wave became better defined with more representation of the cyclonic turning into the low. Convection increased early the next day, and a Hurricane Hunters flight into the system reported the presence of a closed low-level circulation; accordingly, the National Hurricane Center initiated advisories on Tropical Depression Six at 2100 UTC on August 31 while it was located about 180 mi (295 km) east-southeast of the southern Windward Islands. Upon becoming a tropical cyclone, the depression was located to the south of a strong

ridge A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...

, resulting in a west-northwest motion. The system maintained curved

rainbands A rainband is a cloud and precipitation structure associated with an area of rainfall which is significantly elongated. Rainbands can be stratiform or convective, and are generated by differences in temperature. When noted on weather radar ima ...

with expanding

outflow Outflow may refer to: *Capital outflow, the capital leaving a particular economy *Bipolar outflow, in astronomy, two continuous flows of gas from the poles of a star *Outflow (hydrology), the discharge of a lake or other reservoir system * Outflow ...

, and with light

wind shear Wind shear (or windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or horizontal ...

and warm water temperatures the environment favored further development. Its deep convection consolidated very near the center, and shortly after passing over the island of

Grenada Grenada ( ; Grenadian Creole French: ) is an island country in the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea at the southern end of the Grenadines island chain. Grenada consists of the island of Grenada itself, two smaller islands, Carriacou and Pe ...

the depression intensified into Tropical Storm Felix early at around 0900 UTC on September 1. Felix quickly strengthened as it developed a small inner core of convection with tightly-wound bands around the center, and by late on September 1 an eye feature was observed on satellite imagery. Based on reports from reconnaissance aircraft, the National Hurricane Center estimated that Felix attained hurricane status by early on September 2 while located about 155 mi (250 km) east-northeast of

Bonaire Bonaire (; , ; pap, Boneiru, , almost pronounced ) is a Dutch island in the Leeward Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. Its capital is the port of Kralendijk, on the west ( leeward) coast of the island. Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao form the ABC i ...

. Tracking through an area of extremely low wind shear and increasingly high

oceanic heat content In oceanography and climatology, ocean heat content (OHC) is a term for the energy absorbed by the ocean, where it is stored for indefinite time periods as internal energy or enthalpy. The rise in OHC accounts for over 90% of Earth’s excess th ...

, Felix quickly developed a well-defined eye, a symmetric cloud structure, and strong upper-level outflow; consequently, the hurricane commenced

explosive intensification In meteorology, rapid intensification is a situation where a tropical cyclone intensifies dramatically in a short period of time. The United States National Hurricane Center defines rapid intensification as an increase in the maximum sustained ...

shortly afterward. Felix attained major hurricane status at around 1800 UTC on September 2 while located about 490 mi (790 km) southeast of Kingston,

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

. Rapid strengthening continued, and later that day the hurricane attained Category 4 status on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale with the pressure dropping to 957 mbar (hPa; 28.26 inHg); this corresponded to a falling rate of 3.4 mbar (hPa; 0.1 inHg) per hour, which the National Hurricane Center described as "one of the more rapid deepening rates we have observed." A Hurricane Hunters flight reported a stadium effect in the eye, and also reported the eye diameter shrank to 14 mi (22 km). A subsequent Hurricane Hunters flight experienced flight level winds of 175 mph (280 km/h), with peak surface winds of 163 mph (263 km/h) reported in the southwest quadrant of the eyewall; surface winds of 189 mph (306 km/h) were found in its northeastern quadrant, although the National Hurricane Center reported the peak reading could have been contaminated due to

graupel Graupel (; ), also called soft hail, hominy snow, or snow pellets, is precipitation that forms when supercooled water droplets in air are collected and freeze on falling snowflakes, forming balls of crisp, opaque rime. Graupel is distinct from ...

in the clouds. Based on the observations, it is estimated Felix attained winds of 175 mph (280 km/h) by 0000 UTC on September 3 while located about 390 mi (625 km) southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, making Felix a Category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. This also makes Felix the second-fastest intensifying Atlantic hurricane on record, just behind Wilma 2 years prior. While investigating the hurricane, Hurricane Hunters encountered extreme turbulence and potentially dangerous graupel, which forced the flight to abort the mission. Continuing quickly westward, the diameter of the eye decreased to 12 mi (19 km), and the National Hurricane Center estimates the hurricane attained a minimum central pressure of 929 mbar (hPa; 27.43 inHg) about seven hours after it reached Category 5 status. Initially, Felix was predicted to track west-northwestward, striking

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

before crossing the

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula (, also , ; es, Península de Yucatán ) is a large peninsula in southeastern Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north ...

; however, its path remained nearly due westward. Subsequently, cloud tops near the center started to warm as the eye became less distinct, and by 1800 UTC on September 3, Felix weakened to Category 4 status with winds of 145 mph (235 km/h). On September 4, Felix had completed an

eyewall replacement cycle In meteorology, eyewall replacement cycles, also called concentric eyewall cycles, naturally occur in intense tropical cyclones, generally with winds greater than , or major hurricanes ( Category 3 or above). When tropical cyclones reach this int ...

and began strengthening again during the day. Felix was upgraded to a Category 5 for the second time at 1040 UTC, and made landfall in Nicaragua just south of its border with

, in the

Mosquito Coast The Mosquito Coast, also known as the Mosquitia or Mosquito Shore, historically included the area along the eastern coast of present-day Nicaragua and Honduras. It formed part of the Western Caribbean Zone. It was named after the local Miskit ...

region, as a Category 5 hurricane with 160 mph (260 km/h) winds. Hurricane Felix struck Nicaragua on the same day as

Hurricane Henriette The name Henriette has been used for seven tropical cyclones in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. * Hurricane Henriette (1983) – Strong Category 4 hurricane that remained offshore Mexico * Tropical Storm Henriette (1989) – Weak tropical storm th ...

struck the Baja California Peninsula in the eastern

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

, which marked the second recorded occurrence that a

North Atlantic hurricane An Atlantic hurricane, also known as tropical storm or simply hurricane, is a tropical cyclone that forms in the Atlantic Ocean, primarily between the months of June and November. A hurricane differs from a cyclone or typhoon only on the basis of ...

and a

Pacific hurricane A Pacific hurricane is a mature tropical cyclone that develops within the northeastern and central Pacific Ocean to the east of 180°W, north of the equator. For tropical cyclone warning purposes, the northern Pacific is divided into three regio ...

made landfall on the same day; the previous occurrence was on August 23, 1992, when

Hurricane Andrew Hurricane Andrew was a very powerful and destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that struck the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana in August 1992. It is the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida in terms of structures damaged ...

hit the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

on the same day Hurricane Lester hit Mexico's Baja California Peninsula. By nine hours after moving ashore, the system maintained a well-organized cloud pattern and intense rainbands, although the winds rapidly decreased; early on September 5 Felix weakened to a tropical storm as its upper-level circulation became detached from the low-level portion. The system deteriorated to a tropical depression as it crossed into southern Honduras, and at 0900 UTC the National Hurricane Center issued the last advisory on Felix as it began degenerating into a broad low pressure area. The remnants of Felix tracked west-northwestward over other portions of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

, and eventually dissipated over the

Mexican state The states of Mexico are first-level administrative territorial entities of the country of Mexico, which is officially named Mexico, United Mexican States. There are 32 federal entities in Mexico (31 states and the capital, Mexico City, as a sepa ...

Tabasco Tabasco (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tabasco ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tabasco), is one of the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 17 municipalities and its capital city is Villahermosa. It is located in ...

on September 7.

Preparations

Upon Felix's becoming a tropical cyclone, a

tropical storm warning Tropical cyclone warnings and watches are alerts issued by national weather forecasting bodies to coastal areas threatened by the imminent approach of a tropical cyclone of tropical storm or hurricane intensity. They are notices to the local popul ...

was issued for

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines () is an island country in the Caribbean. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, which lie in the West Indies at the southern end of the eastern border of the Caribbean Sea wh ...

Tobago Tobago () is an List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, island and Regions and municipalities of Trinidad and Tobago, ward within the Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located northeast of the larger island of Trini ...

, and

and its dependencies; a tropical storm watch was also issued for the northeastern

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

coast from

Cumaná Cumaná () is the capital city of Venezuela's Sucre State. It is located east of Caracas. Cumaná was one of the first cities founded by Spain in the mainland Americas and is the oldest continuously-inhabited Hispanic-established city in South ...

to Pedernales, including

Isla Margarita Margarita Island (, ) is the largest island in the Venezuelan state of Nueva Esparta, situated off the northeastern coast of the country, in the Caribbean Sea. The capital city of Nueva Esparta, La Asunción, is located on the island. History ...

, as well as the ABC islands. The National Emergency Management Agency of

was fully activated, with 79 shelters opened on the island. Coinciding with the upgrade of Felix to tropical storm status, the watch for the ABC islands was upgraded to a tropical storm warning. A hurricane watch was added to the islands early on September 2, where several tourists attempted to leave by plane prior to the arrival of the storm. Early on September 2, the government of Jamaica issued a tropical storm watch for the island, which was canceled as the hurricane passed far to its south. Later on September 2, a tropical storm watch was issued for

Grand Cayman Grand Cayman is the largest of the three Cayman Islands and the location of the territory's capital, George Town. In relation to the other two Cayman Islands, it is approximately 75 miles (121 km) southwest of Little Cayman and 90 miles ( ...

, and the next day a tropical storm warning was put in place on

Providencia Island Isla de Providencia, historically Old Providence, and generally known as Providencia, is a mountainous Caribbean island that is part of the Colombian department of Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina and the municipality o ...

. A hurricane watch was issued for the Caribbean coast of Guatemala and the entire coastline of

at 1200 UTC on September 3. At 0300 UTC on September 3, the government of Honduras issued a hurricane watch from

Limón Limón (), commonly known as Puerto Limón, is a district, the capital city and main hub of Limón province, as well as of the Limón canton in Costa Rica. It is the seventh largest city in Costa Rica, with a population of over 55,000, and is ho ...

to the Honduras/Nicaragua border, which was upgraded to a hurricane warning six hours later. At the same time, a hurricane watch was extended westward to the Honduras/

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

border, and early on September 4 a tropical storm warning was put in place for the same region. Officials ordered evacuations for citizens in low-lying areas near the coastline; by midday on September 3, around 300 tourists evacuated from the

Bay Islands Bay Islands may refer to: * Bay Islands Department, Honduras * Southern Moreton Bay Islands, Queensland, Australia See also * Bay of Islands * Bay of Isles * Island Bay, Wellington * Little Bay Islands Little Bay Islands is a vacant town in ...

department, with an additional 400 preparing to leave by plane; approximately 2,000 people were evacuated from coastal areas. By the time the hurricane made landfall, about 20,000 people in Honduras left for safer areas. At 1500 UTC on September 3, about 21 hours before its final landfall, the government of Nicaragua issued a hurricane warning from

Puerto Cabezas Puerto Cabezas (; en, Bragman's Bluff; miq, Bilwi) is a municipality and city in Nicaragua. It is the capital of Miskito nation in the North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. The municipality and the entire region are native American lands. ...

northward to the national border. About 12 hours before landfall, a tropical storm warning was issued from Puerto Cabezas southward to

Prinzapolka Prinzapolka () is a Miskito municipality in the North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region of Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the ...

. Prior to the arrival of the hurricane, officials sent about 140,000 lbs (63,000 kg) of meals and emergency supplies to near the landfall location.

Impact

Caribbean Islands

At around 1200 UTC on September 1 a wind gust of 46 mph (74 km/h) was recorded on

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

, and around the same time a gust of 44 mph (71 km/h) was observed in Saint Vincent. The storm produced heavy rainfall across the Windward Islands. On

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

, heavy precipitation caused mudslides and overflown rivers which destroyed some bridges; moderate winds damaged several buildings on the island. Damage on neighboring

was concentrated on its northern portion, where several mudslides resulted from the rainfall; monetary damage on Tobago was estimated at $250,000 (2007 TTD; $40,000 2007 USD, $ USD). Felix produced gusty winds on

, which downed several power lines and destroyed the roofs of two houses; rough waves also broke several vessels from their anchors. In

St. Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerin ...

, winds from the storm damaged the roof of a store in

Castries Castries is the capital and largest city of Saint Lucia, an island country in the Caribbean. The urban area has a population of approximately 20,000, while the eponymous district has a population of 70,000, as at May 2013. The city stretches o ...

, which collapsed and destroyed 12 vehicles. In the ABC islands, the hurricane resulted in gusty winds and heavy rainfall. However, little damage was reported in

; the precipitation left several homes submerged under water in

Curaçao Curaçao ( ; ; pap, Kòrsou, ), officially the Country of Curaçao ( nl, Land Curaçao; pap, Pais Kòrsou), is a Lesser Antilles island country in the southern Caribbean Sea and the Dutch Caribbean region, about north of the Venezuela coast ...

. In

Aruba Aruba ( , , ), officially the Country of Aruba ( nl, Land Aruba; pap, Pais Aruba) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands physically located in the mid-south of the Caribbean Sea, about north of the Venezuela peninsula of ...

, the winds damaged one house and briefly left a northern town without power. Hurricane Felix produced strong winds and 10 ft (3 m) waves along the north coast of

, which left one person missing in

Puerto Cabello Puerto Cabello () is a city on the north coast of Venezuela. It is located in Carabobo State, about 210 km west of Caracas. As of 2011, the city had a population of around 182,400. The city is home to the largest and busiest port in the coun ...

Central America

Early reports suggest severe damage in Honduras and Nicaragua after Felix made landfall as a Category 5 hurricane. In Puerto Cabezas, nearly every structure sustained at least roof damage, and many buildings were destroyed. Along the Mosquito Coast, flooding and mudslides were reported, destroying many houses and blocking highways. The government of Nicaragua declared the northern Caribbean coast a

disaster area A disaster area is a region or a locale that has been heavily damaged by either natural, technological or social hazards. Disaster areas affect the population living in the community by dramatic increase in expense, loss of energy, food and serv ...

. The

Miskito Cays The Miskito Cays (Spanish: Cayos Miskitos) are an archipelago with an area of 27 km2 located off shore in the northeastern Caribbean coast of Nicaragua, part of the North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. The Miskito Cays are composed of 7 ...

, located about from

Bilwi Puerto Cabezas (; en, Bragman's Bluff; miq, Bilwi) is a municipality and city in Nicaragua. It is the capital of Miskito nation in the North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. The municipality and the entire region are native American lands. ...

on the northeast coast of Nicaragua, was among the strongest hit areas. Hurricane Felix had not yet made landfall but reached maximum force when it passed over the Miskito Cays. The winds of the hurricane, with speeds of up to 160 mph (260 km/h), destroyed the Cays completely.

Pillar A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression (physical), compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column i ...

s that previously formed the base of the houses were the only remains on the Cays. At least 133 people were reported dead. At least 130 of them were in Nicaragua. While few details have been disclosed, they include at least 25 dead Miskito fishermen swept away, a drowning death on a boat, impact from a fallen tree and at least one indirect death caused by medical complications after birth. There were three deaths reported in Honduras, one of which was caused by a motor vehicle accident caused by heavy rain and landslides, and two caused by flooding in the capital city of

Tegucigalpa Tegucigalpa (, , ), formally Tegucigalpa, Municipality of the Central District ( es, Tegucigalpa, Municipio del Distrito Central or ''Tegucigalpa, M.D.C.''), and colloquially referred to as ''Tegus'' or ''Teguz'', is the capital and largest city ...

. However, hundreds of others were missing (mostly at sea), and communication was difficult to impossible in many areas. Some survivors were also found on the Mosquito Coast who were initially reported missing. According to official information, at least 40,000 people were affected and 9,000 houses destroyed, most of them in the Nicaraguan city of Bilwi (Puerto Cabezas), where a "State of Disaster" was decreed by the government. A total lack of supplies and services were also reported in the area. The response was almost immediate. Help from Venezuela,

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, and Honduras was received, and a lot of organizations, such as the Nicaraguan Red Cross, the media and universities organized collections all over the country. Nicaraguan

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Daniel Ortega José Daniel Ortega Saavedra (; born 11 November 1945) is a Nicaraguans, Nicaraguan revolutionary and politician serving as President of Nicaragua since 2007. Previously he was leader of Nicaragua from 1979 to 1990, first as coordinator of the ...

visited Bilwi on the day after the catastrophe and promised the reconstruction of houses to the people affected. Damage in Nicaragua totaled 13.4 billion (2007

NIO are two wrathful and muscular guardians of the Gautama Buddha, Buddha standing today at the entrance of many Buddhist temples in East Asian Buddhism in the form of frightening wrestler-like statues. They are dharmapala manifestations of the bo ...

; $716.3 million 2007 USD, $ USD). Inland flooding was also reported in Honduras, particularly near Tegucigalpa and in the northwestern regions where the

Ulua River Ulua may refer to: * Ulúa River * San Juan de Ulúa, a complex located on an island of the same name in the Gulf of Mexico * USS ''Ulua'' (SS-428), a submarine of the United States Navy * ''Ulua'' (fish), a genus of fishes in the family Carangid ...

and the Chamelecon River overflowed into an agricultural area.

Coastal flooding Coastal flooding normally occurs when dry and low-lying land is submerged by seawater. The range of a coastal flooding is a result of the elevation of floodwater that penetrates the inland which is controlled by the topography of the coastal land ...

also damages the town of Izabal in Guatemala where 850 people were evacuated. Crop damage in Honduras amounted to L68.28 million (2007

HNL HNL may refer to: * Croatian Football League (''Hrvatska nogometna liga''), the top level of the Croatian football league system * Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, IATA airport code HNL, in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States * ''Hindustan Newsp ...

; $3.64 million 2007 USD, $ USD).

Aftermath

After Felix, over 160,000 people were suffering as many communities were stranded due to the storm. An appeal was given out by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

for over $48 million (2007 USD, $ USD) in emergency aid to the hard-hit areas, particularly in Nicaragua. The appeal United States federal government delivered over $1.17 million (2007 USD, $ USD) in assistance, and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

responded with a donation of

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

1 million euros ($1.36 million 2007 USD, $ USD). The

United States Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...

(USAID) and the

Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance The Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) was an organizational unit within the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) charged by the President of the United States with directing and coordinating international United ...

(OFDA) airlifted 120 rolls of plastic sheeting to the severely affected areas, which was used to repair the damaged roofs of health clinics and schools. USAID and OFDA also distributed 12,000 ten-liter water containers to Puerto Cabezas. Emergency relief supplies from both USAID and OFDA totaled to $94,190 (2007 USD, $ USD). In the aftermath of both Hurricane Dean and Felix, combined, USAID and OFDA donated $25,000 (2007 USD, $ USD) in aid to Honduras, and $1.2 million (2007 USD, $ USD) to Nicaragua. In addition,

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secu ...

(USDOD) gave $1.5 million (2007 USD, $ USD) in

humanitarian assistance Humanitarian aid is material and logistic assistance to people who need help. It is usually short-term help until the long-term help by the government and other institutions replaces it. Among the people in need are the homeless, refugees, and ...

to Nicaragua. In collaboration with USAID and OFDA, the USDOD delivered near 27.55

ton Ton is the name of any one of several units of measure. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. Mainly it describes units of weight. Confusion can arise because ''ton'' can mean * the long ton, which is 2,240 pounds ...

s (25

metric tons The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United States ...

) of food from the United Nation's World Food Program to the

North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region The North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region is one of two autonomous regions in Nicaragua. It was created by the Autonomy Statute of 7 September 1987. It covers an area of 33,106 km2 and has a population of 541,189 (2021 estimate). It is the l ...

, Nicaragua.

Retirement

Due to the extensive damage and high death toll from Felix in Nicaragua, the name was officially retired on May 13, 2008 by the

World Meteorological Organization The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology and geophysics. The WMO originated from the Internati ...

during its annual meeting in

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

, and will never be used again for any future Atlantic hurricanes. It was replaced by '' Fernand'' on List V of the

Atlantic hurricane naming lists Tropical cyclones and subtropical cyclones are named by various warning centers to simplify communication between forecasters and the general public regarding forecasts, watches and warnings. The names are intended to reduce confusion in the ...

, which was used in the

2013 Atlantic hurricane season The 2013 Atlantic hurricane season was a well below average Atlantic hurricane season and the first since 1994 with no major hurricanes. It was well below average for both hurricanes and major hurricanes but it was a slightly above average yea ...

References

External links

NHC report on Hurricane Felix

NHC archive on Hurricane Felix

archive on Hurricane Felix

Tropical Cyclones

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

Video from the eye of Hurricane Felix
{{DEFAULTSORT:Felix (2007) 2007 Atlantic hurricane season Hurricanes in Venezuela Hurricanes in Nicaragua Hurricanes in Honduras Hurricanes in El Salvador Hurricanes in Guatemala Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes Retired Atlantic hurricanes

Hurricane Felix Hurricane Felix was an extremely powerful Category 5 Atlantic hurricane which was the southernmost-landfalling Category 5 storm on record, surpassing Hurricane Edith of 1971. It was the sixth named storm, second hurricane, and second Categor ...

Hurricanes in the ABC Islands

Felix Felix may refer to: * Felix (name), people and fictional characters with the name Places * Arabia Felix is the ancient Latin name of Yemen * Felix, Spain, a municipality of the province Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, ...