The powerful hurricane Eta strengthened Monday, November 2 over the warm waters of the Caribbean Sea, passing in category 4, and slowly approaching the coast of Nicaragua, putting the north of Central America on alert.
Eta moved to Category 4, with maximum winds of between 210 and 249 km / h, the NHC, the US Hurricane Monitoring Center, said.
Nicaragua, where Eta is expected to make landfall on Tuesday, is on alert, as are neighboring El Salvador and Honduras, which are expecting torrential rains.
The NHC predicts
"catastrophic winds, flash floods and landslides"
in these three countries in northern Central America.
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The eye of the cyclone was at around 10 p.m. (universal time) about 225 km northeast of Bilwi, on the Nicaraguan coast, on the track of the hurricane, which is moving at about 15 km / hour.
The hurricane is expected to land on the northeast coast of Nicaragua on Tuesday morning before likely losing power as it hits mountainous areas, according to the weather forecast.
Strong gusts of wind were already signaling the approach of the hurricane on the northern coast of Nicaragua on Monday morning, placed on red alert (maximum).
Nicaraguan authorities have stepped up prevention preparations in towns and indigenous regions on the country's northeast coast, where more than 80,000 people live.
The inhabitants of the Miskitos islets, off the Caribbean coast of northern Nicaragua, as well as the natives living in the coastal areas near the border with Honduras,
"more than 3,000 families"
in total, were evacuated on Sunday, a Nicaraguan Vice-President Rosario Murillo announced.
The authorities also transported 88 tonnes of food to the area, as well as civil protection teams.
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The authorities fear coastal flooding, with waves of more than two meters, as well as damage to homes by the wind.
"The construction of houses is very light"
in this region, underlined the director of the service of disaster prevention Guillermo Gonzalez.
“The eye of the hurricane is heading exactly towards Bilwi (...) there are a lot of flood zones.
People are packing and wanting to go to shelters, ”
said Limbort Bucardo, a resident of Bilwi.
Residents rushed into banks and shops to stock up on food, lamps and radios, he added.
Eta has also put neighboring El Salvador and Honduras on alert.
The departments of the Caribbean coast of Honduras have been put on red alert in anticipation of heavy rains.
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Four graphics to understand
The Guatemalan authorities also fear the impact of the rains associated with the cyclone, which can cause landslides, floods and river floods due to soil saturation at the end of the tropical rainy season.
Costa Rica has already suffered from torrential rains on Sunday and the authorities have displaced the most exposed residents.
