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 ...
(, ; ), officially the Republic of Honduras ( es, República de Honduras), is a country in
Central America
Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...
. To the north of Honduras is
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 ...
and
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 ...
, to the south is
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 ...
, to the west is
El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...
, and to the east is the
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
.
Pre 1900s
*
Hurricane Two makes landfall on the
Nicaragua-Honduras border, damaging crops.
1900s
1990s
*August 10, 1993 –
Tropical Depression Bret moves south of Honduras, bringing with it rain and wind with its outer bands.
*September 16, 1993 –
Tropical Depression Gert passes over Honduras, causing rainfall which worsened the rainfall situation that Tropical Depression Bret caused.
*November 27, 1996 – The remnants of
Hurricane Marco The name Marco has been used for four tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean.
* Tropical Storm Marco (1990), hugged west coast of Florida, making landfall as a tropical depression, causing heavy rain and moderate damage
* Hurricane Marco (1996), fo ...
drops heavy rainfall over Honduras.
*October 26 – November 1, 1998 –
Hurricane Mitch
Hurricane Mitch is the second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, causing over 11,000 fatalities in Central America in 1998, including approximately 7,000 in Honduras and 3,800 in Nicaragua due to cataclysmic flooding from the slow motion ...
stalls to the northeast of Honduras with 180 mile per hour winds before weakening rapidly and making landfall in Honduras with 80 mile per hour winds. Large amounts of rainfall and high winds lead to major flooding and large amounts of landslides throughout Honduras, leading to the death of 7,000+ people.
*October 30, 1999 –
Tropical Depression Katrina passes over Honduras, bringing heavy rainfall.
2000s
*September 16, 2000 -
Tropical Depression Keith moves north of Honduras, dropping enough rain to force more than 200 families to evacuate their homes. One was killed when a wall collapsed and fell on them, and five others were killed when their plane went missing over
Roatan Island. A bridge along the
Pan-American Highway
The Pan-American Highway (french: (Auto)route panaméricaine/transaméricaine; pt, Rodovia/Auto-estrada Pan-americana; es, Autopista/Carretera/Ruta Panamericana) is a network of roads stretching across the Americas and measuring about in to ...
collapsed, which had been rebuilt only two years before due to
Hurricane Mitch
Hurricane Mitch is the second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, causing over 11,000 fatalities in Central America in 1998, including approximately 7,000 in Honduras and 3,800 in Nicaragua due to cataclysmic flooding from the slow motion ...
. A government agency reported that more than 80,000 people were left isolated in parts of southern Honduras.
*October 6, 2005 - The remnants of
Hurricane Stan
Hurricane Stan was a relatively weak but deadly tropical cyclone that affected areas of Central America and Mexico in early October 2005. The eighteenth named storm and eleventh hurricane of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, Stan formed from ...
move over Honduras, causing heavy rainfall. More than 2,475 homes were destroyed and seven people were killed.
*October 31, 2001 -
Tropical Depression Michelle drifts over parts of eastern Honduras, dropping very heavy rain. In the
Gracias a Dios Department
Gracias a Dios (; "Thanks to God", or "Thank God") is one of the 18 departments (''departamentos'') into which Honduras is divided. The departmental capital is Puerto Lempira; until 1975 it was Brus Laguna.
History
Once a part of the Mosquito Co ...
, one of the most impacted areas, over 100 villages were isolated at once. Floods ended up damaging 245 homes across the nation, causing the displacement of 4,393 people. Also, six bridges had been damaged, and out of those six, three were destroyed. The municipality of
Yoro
Yoro, with a population of 25,560 (2020 calculation), is the capital city of the Yoro Department of Honduras and the municipal seat of Yoro Municipality. It is notable for a local event known as Lluvia de Peces, where it is claimed that strong ...
was left with no running water or electricity after the storm, and it also destroyed 35 of Honduras water systems. Along with that, 70 percent of the nation's bean crop was destroyed. After the storm passed, 21 people were reported dead, 50 were left missing, and the storm caused $5 million in damage. To make it worst, a
cold front
A cold front is the leading edge of a cooler mass of air at ground level that replaces a warmer mass of air and lies within a pronounced surface trough of low pressure. It often forms behind an extratropical cyclone (to the west in the Norther ...
passed over the country right after, dropping even more rain.
*October 30, 2005 - The outer bands and remnants of
Hurricane Beta
Hurricane Beta was a compact and intense tropical cyclone that impacted the southwestern Caribbean in late October 2005. Beta was the twenty-fourth tropical storm, fourteenth hurricane, and seventh and final major hurricane of the record-b ...
drop torrential rainfall over Honduras, peaking at . An estimated 60,483 people in Honduras were affected by the storm, mostly due to mudslides and flooding. 1,191 homes, 66 drinking water systems, 30 roads, and 41 bridges were either damaged or destroyed. About of farm land was destroyed by flooding and mudslides. An estimate of 11,000 people displaced by the system was reported. The storm caused $170 million
lempiras, or around $9 million
US dollars
The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from Dollar, other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American ...
in damage.
*November 19, 2005 -
Tropical Storm Gamma The name Gamma has been used for two tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean.
* Tropical Storm Gamma (2005)
Tropical Storm Gamma was the 25th storm of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. Gamma formed on November 18 from a tropical wave w ...
moves just to the north, dropping locally heavy rain but not producing tropical storm force winds. An unofficial report showed that of rain had fallen on the island of Roatan, and that more than of rain had been dropped on the northern coast of Honduras before Gamma even reached the country between November 16 and 19. Floods and landslides were triggered by the large amount of rainfall in the northern departments of Honduras, killing 34 and leaving another 13 missing. 50,000 people were stuck after dozens of bridges were washed away, and more than 2,000 homes had been destroyed. Along with that, 5,200 acres (21 kilometers²) of banana crop was destroyed, causing around $13–18 million (2005 USD) in damage.
*September 4, 2007 -
Tropical Depression Felix passes over Honduras after making landfall in Nicaragua, dropping heavy rainfall and causing floods. Two people were killed in the capital city of Tegucigalpa after a few streets and markets were flooded. Both 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 there banks, flooding agricultural land. Overall agriculture damage to Honduras topped out at $H68.28 million ($4.49 million 2020 US dollars).
*May 29, 2008 -
Tropical Storm Alma
Tropical Storm Alma of the 2008 Pacific hurricane season was the easternmost forming Pacific tropical cyclone on record. It formed within the monsoon trough just off the coast of Costa Rica on May 29. Initially forecast to remain a weak tropic ...
passes over Honduras, still at tropical storm force strength, bringing winds and rain. In
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 ...
,
TACA Flight 390
TACA Flight 390 was a scheduled flight on May 30, 2008, by TACA International from San Salvador, El Salvador, to Miami, Florida, United States, with intermediate stops at Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula in Honduras. The aircraft, an Airbus ...
was pushed off a wet runway, killing three people and injuring another 80 during the incident. A young girl was also killed when a raging stream swept her away from her family.
*October 15, 2008 -
Tropical Depression 16 makes landfall in southeastern Honduras, dropping torrential rainfall after months of drought in Honduras, triggering floods. Around 50% of transportation areas in Honduras were damaged, including 227 roads and 106 bridges, according to
Reuters
Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
The agency was estab ...
. A landslide near
Corquín
Corquín is a town, with a population of 6,728 (2013 census),Citypopulation.de
Population of all localities in t ...
forced hundreds of residents to evacuate after blocking a river and creating a natural dam. Around of crops was damaged, with most in the
Comayagua Department
Comayagua () is one of the 18 departments ''(departamentos)'' into which Honduras is divided. The departmental capital is Comayagua.
Geography
The department covers a total surface area of 5,124 km² and, in 2015, had an estimated population ...
. Around 2,474 homes were destroyed and another 8,688 had been damaged or flooded by the storm. Overall, the storm killed 60 people and caused $3 billion lempiras (US$225 million).
*November 6, 2008 -
Tropical Storm Paloma's outer
rainband's drop heavy rainfall over coastal areas, making the already bad situation with the
October 2008 Central America floods
The October 2008 Central America floods were caused by a series of low-pressure areas including Tropical Depression Sixteen, a short-lived tropical cyclone in the 2008 Atlantic hurricane season that made landfall in Honduras. Heavy rainfall bega ...
even worse. Up to of rainfall dropped down over parts of Nicaragua and Honduras. More than 60 people were killed, and 300,000 were left needing assistance.
*November 6, 2009 -
Tropical Storm Ida passes over Honduras, dropping heavy rain. A peak of of rainfall was recorded in
Puerto Lempira
Puerto Lempira or Auhya Yari is the Miskito capital of the Gracias a Dios department in northeastern Honduras, located on the shores of the Caratasca Lagoon. Though it does not have paved roads, it is the largest town in the La Mosquitia regio ...
. Some rivers in the country swelled, but none broke their banks. Minor flooding and fallen trees were reported in the northern part of Honduras.
2010s
*September 24, 2010 -
Tropical Storm Matthew hits Honduras with winds, causing heavy rain and strong winds. Thousands of residents were left without power for hours. On the northern coast, in
Olanchito
Olanchito is a municipality in the department of Yoro, Honduras, and a town with a population of 45,270 as of 2020. The municipality was founded in 1530 and comprises 70 villages, approximately 300 hamlets, and approximately 100,000 inhabitants ...
, an overflowed creek flooded a house, but firefighters were able to save the ten people inside. Several homes and roads were damaged along with nine bridges, leaving them inaccessible. Grain, banana, and sugarcane crops were majorly damaged by water from rivers. 15 people were left missing after boarding a sailboat off shore.
*October 11, 2010 -
Tropical Storm Paula passes over extreme eastern Honduras, causing strong winds and dumping heavy rainfall. Gale-force winds over land triggered the closure of the
Puerto Lempira Airport
Puerto Lempira Airport is an airport serving Puerto Lempira in Gracias a Dios Department, Honduras. It handles regional air traffic for the city. It is also a hub for general aviation and the Honduran Air Force.
The airport is within Puerto Le ...
. Coastal districts recorded of rainfall. Winds from the storm were estimated at , and residents from
La Mosquitia reported that winds there were stronger than those of
Hurricane Mitch
Hurricane Mitch is the second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, causing over 11,000 fatalities in Central America in 1998, including approximately 7,000 in Honduras and 3,800 in Nicaragua due to cataclysmic flooding from the slow motion ...
. Around four homes and two roads were destroyed by the storm in Puerto Lempira. A dozen structures in Cauquira, which included a police station and school, had been damaged by flooding. Waves more than high also pounded beaches.
*October 23, 2010 -
Tropical Storm Richard passes to the north of Honduras, downing trees and power lines. Mudslides cut off an estimated 15,000 people in more than 40 villages. Heavy rain was reported on the off shore
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 ...
. The strongest winds were recorded at 58 miles per hour on
Roatán
Roatán () is an island in the Caribbean, about off the northern coast of Honduras. It is located between the islands of Utila and Guanaja, and is the largest of the Bay Islands of Honduras. The island was formerly known in English as Ruatan ...
.
*August 19, 2011 -
Tropical Storm Harvey moves just north of Honduras, dropping heavy rainfall. The maximum rainfall total was around in
Roatán
Roatán () is an island in the Caribbean, about off the northern coast of Honduras. It is located between the islands of Utila and Guanaja, and is the largest of the Bay Islands of Honduras. The island was formerly known in English as Ruatan ...
. Despite this, no damage was reported.
*June 17, 2013 -
Tropical Depression Barry passes over Honduras, causing significant rainfall and flooding districts of Honduras. The maximum total of rainfall was in
La Ceiba
La Ceiba () is a municipality, the capital of the Honduran department of Atlántida (department), Atlántida and a port city on the northern coast of Honduras in Central America. It is located on the southern edge of the Caribbean, forming part ...
, resulting in floods that damage 60 homes and affected 300 people. Several landslides occurring in
Iroina blocked off roadways. A likely
tornado
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...
hit
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 ...
, destroying nine homes and damaging another 91. Another four people were injured when their house was lifted up and dropped back down.
*August 3, 2016 –
Tropical Storm Earl passes just to the north of Honduras, bringing rough seas. A
lobster boat capsized offshore with 83 people on board, leaving two missing. Three homes were damaged in the
Cortés department
Cortés is one of the 18 departments of Honduras. The department covers an area of 3,954 km² and, in 2015, had an estimated population of 1,612,762, making it the most populous in Honduras. The Merendón Mountains rise in western Cortés, ...
after the outer bands hit, bringing strong winds. Another person was injured in
San Pedro Sula
San Pedro Sula () is the capital of Cortés Department, Honduras. It is located in the northwest corner of the country in the Sula Valley, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of Puerto Cortés on the Caribbean Sea. With a population of 671,460 ...
.
2020s
*November 6, 2020 -
Tropical Depression Eta passes over Honduras, bringing catastrophic amounts of rainfall to Honduras and flooding. At least 457 buildings were damaged, 41 communities were cut off by washed out roads, and nine bridges were destroyed. A ferry that was leaving
Roatán
Roatán () is an island in the Caribbean, about off the northern coast of Honduras. It is located between the islands of Utila and Guanaja, and is the largest of the Bay Islands of Honduras. The island was formerly known in English as Ruatan ...
was rocked after large waves smashed it while trying to get to the city of La Ceiba, but fortunately nobody was injured or killed. A wall collapsed at the
El Progreso
El Progreso () is a city, with a population of 119,260 (2020 calculation), and a municipality located in the Honduran department of Yoro.
Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport of San Pedro Sula is located west of the city. To the eas ...
prison, letting in waist-deep water and forcing the evacuation of 600 inmates. 74 people were killed, mainly due to flooding and landslides. Total enconomic losses are estimated to be about 125 billion lempiras (2020 HD, US$5 billion).
*November 18, 2020 -
Tropical Storm Iota passes over western Honduras, stopping recovery efforts for Hurricane Eta, and making damage even worse. A river in
Tocoa, Colón overflowed after heavy rainfall. Mudslides and downed trees were reported over much of the country. La Ceiba recorded a wind gust of . Many concrete and wooden houses had been decimated. On the morning of November 18, COPECO reported that more than 366,000 people had been affected by the storm. 80% of the roads in
Copán Ruinas
Copán Ruinas is a municipality in the Honduran department of Copán. The town, located close to the Guatemalan border, is a major gateway for tourists traveling to the Pre-Columbian ruins of Copán. The Copán ruins house a UN World Heritage si ...
had been rendered impassible, mostly due to landslides and flooding.
Climatology
Deadly storms
{, class="wikitable" align="center" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; border: none;"
, - bgcolor="#CCCCCC"
! Name
! Year
! Number of Deaths
, -
,
Fifi , , 1974 , , 8,000+
, -
,
Mitch
Mitch is a short form of the masculine given name Mitchell. It is also sometimes a nickname, usually for a person with the surname Mitchell. It may refer to:
People
* Mitch Altman (born 1956), hacker and inventor
* Mitch Apau (born 1990), Dutc ...
, , 1998 , , 7,000+
, -
See also
*
Hurricanes in Central America
:*
Hurricanes in Belize
:*
Hurricanes in Costa Rica
Costa Rica (English: Rich Coast), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica, link=no), is a country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, the Pac ...
:*
Hurricanes in Nicaragua
Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in the Central American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the northwest, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Tropi ...
*
List of South America hurricanes
A South American hurricane is a tropical cyclone that affects the continent of South America or its countries. The continent is rarely affected by tropical cyclones, though most storms to hit the area are formed in the North Atlantic Ocean. Typic ...
References
Hurricanes in Honduras
Disasters in Honduras