Hurricane Julia kills 28 in Central America, floods and mudslides expected

At least 28 people have died following Hurricane Julia that slammed Nicaragua’s central Caribbean coast early Sunday. It is currently drenching Guatemala and El Salvador with torrential rains after reemerging in the Pacific. The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) had warned of life-threatening surf and rip conditions along the coasts of El Salvador and Guatemala.

In Honduras, five victims were killed, including a woman who died Sunday after she was swept away by flood waters. A four-year-old boy in a boat that capsized near the Nicaragua border on Saturday night also died, officials said.

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Guatemala’s disaster prevention agency informed that five people were buried after a hillside collapsed on their house in Alta Verapaz, killing them. In Huehuetenango province, near Mexico, nine people died, including a soldier who was there rescuing people.

Five Salvadoran army soldiers died who had taken shelter at a house in Comasagua died after a wall collapsed, El Salvadoran authorities said. Rivers are overflowing in El Salvador and a state of emergency has been declared with 80 storm shelters thrown open for the public.

The wall of a home collapsed in the eastern El Salvador town of Guatajiagua, killing two. Another man in El Salvador was swept away by a current, and another died when a tree fell on him.

The NHC further warned of floods and mudslides across Central America and southern Mexico through Tuesday, with as much as 15 inches of rain expected in isolated areas.

Over 1,300 people have left their homes in Guatemala because of flooding and rising streams.

Panama, Honduras and Costa Rica are also witnessing heavy rains where some highways were closed due to the downpours.

(With inputs from agencies)