Several Central American countries were on alert Saturday as Tropical Storm Julia approached, threatening to develop into a hurricane over the Caribbean Sea before making landfall in Nicaragua, according to the US National Hurricane Center ( National Hurricane Center) and local authorities.
«Julia expected to strengthen into a hurricane later in the day [samedi]. A hurricane warning is in effect for parts of the coast of Nicaragua and the islands of Providence and San Andrés,” the US agency said in a statement.
AFP
Rainfall over the weekend could cause potentially deadly “flashing floods and mudslides” in Central America, the National Hurricane Center also warned.
According to the Colombian Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM), the tropical storm was at 6:30 p.m. GMT 195 km from San Andrés and 180 km from Providence, an island that completes with Santa Catalina an archipelago Colombian of approximately 48,000 inhabitants.
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Colombian President Gustavo Petro has declared “maximum alert” in San Andrés. The storm is advancing at a speed of around 30 km/h with sustained winds of 93 km/h, according to IDEAM.
In Bluefields, one of the main towns on Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast, fishermen were pulling their boats to safety, and locals were rushing to stock up and withdraw cash.
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“We have to prepare ourselves by finding food, plastic, a bit of everything, because we don’t know what will happen,” confided to AFP Javier Duarte, a cabinetmaker who prayed for the storm to deviate from its course. trajectory and spares its city and its 60,000 inhabitants.
Nicaragua’s National System for Disaster Prevention (SINAPRED) put the entire country on yellow alert on Saturday and activated rescue units. The government has advised residents to protect their homes and be ready “to evacuate and take shelter if necessary”.
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In Guatemala, the President, Alejandro Giammattei, announced on Twitter that he had asked institutions to stand ready to help and support Guatemalans who may be affected.
Twenty-two departments of this country, where 60% of the population lives in poverty, have been placed on red alert by the Guatemalan civil protection services (CONRED) as the storm approaches, which could also affect Honduras. and El Salvador.