Tropical Storm Alma pummels Nicaragua, kills one
Pastor Dale Morgan
Tropical Storm Alma pummels Nicaragua, kills one*
30 May 2008 00:05:24 GMT
Source: Reuters
By Luis Diaz
LEON, Nicaragua, May 29 (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Alma, the first
cyclone of the Americas hurricane season, slammed into Nicaragua's
Pacific coast on Thursday, killing one person as winds toppled trees and
ripped roofs off flimsy homes.
Torrential rain fell in this colonial western city as Alma whipped up
sustained winds near 65 mph (100 kph) and even higher gusts.
The former capital of Nicaragua -- home to around 150,000 people -- was
without electricity and telephone services, and shantytowns were
flooded, witnesses said.
Troops in military vehicles dashed out to towns along the coast to
evacuate people in danger by the busload. But other residents, many of
them survivors of previous storms, were reluctant to leave their homes.
One man was killed in the coastal fishing village of Masachapa when he
was electrocuted by downed power lines, said the head of the national
defense forces.
"Shelters are ready but some people are waiting a bit to evacuate," Lt.
Col. Gilberto Narvaez told Reuters.
Hurricane Mitch devastated Central America in 1998, killing 10,000 people.
But Alma hit land before it could gather enough strength to become a
hurricane.
Nicaraguan authorities had planned a mass evacuation on the Pacific
coast of the poor Central American country, where they said 25,000
people were at risk.
In neighboring Honduras, the government ordered the evacuation of up to
4,000 people from low-lying coastal areas under threat from expected sea
surges and flooding.
Up to 55,000 other Hondurans have been instructed to abandon their homes
if rivers break their banks or if there are mudslides, emergency
commissioner Francisco Moncado told Reuters.
Alma made landfall over Nicaragua on Thursday afternoon and was due to
head further inland toward eastern Guatemala, according to the
Miami-based National Hurricane Center.
Heavy rains could hit Central American coffee growing areas if it
continues on its current path.
"Isolated maximum storm total amounts of rain of 20 inches (51 cm) are
possible in areas of high terrain. These rains may produce
life-threatening flash floods and mudslides," the center said in a
statement.
There are no oil platforms or other major energy interests along Alma's
expected path.
The eastern Pacific hurricane season began on May 15.