Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez ordered classes cancelled in seven Atlantic provinces, and the head of the country’s emergency commission warned of torrential rains, particularly along the northern coast. A storm becomes a hurricane when its winds reach 74 miles per hour.
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The forecast track from the National Hurricane Center keeps Earl well south of Cancun, Mexico. “With the increase in coverage will come typical August weather impacts, including tropical downpours, frequent lightning and brief wind gusts at 30 to 40 miles per hour”.
In the meantime, Minister McKenzie commended all the stakeholders that make up the NEOC for their prompt and efficient response to the threats from Tropical Storm Earl.
Earl was 185 miles (298 kilometers) east-southeast of Belize City with top winds of 70 miler per hour, the U.S. Earl’s progress is being watched by the company, which produced 2.18 million barrels of oil a day during the second quarter of this year. During the afternoon, we’ll see temperatures reach the lower 90s with thunderstorm developing after 3 p.m. and lingering through 7 p.m. Rain chances will remain around 40-percent through early next week. Hurricane conditions could begin in Mexico and Belize within the hurricane watch area Wednesday night.RAINFALL: Earl is expected to produce an additional 2 to 4 inches of rainfall over Jamaica. Between Wednesday night and early Thursday morning, Earl is expected to make landfall over Belize.
BELMOPAN, Belize – Tropical Storm Earl neared hurricane force Wednesday as it bore down on the Bay Islands of Honduras and the Caribbean nation of Belize. Residents of Belize City and other coastal communities were being urged to move inland.
This would be the first hurricane landfall on the Caribbean side of central America since Category 1 Hurricane Ernesto nearly exactly four years ago. On this track, the center of Earl will be moving very close to the north coast of Honduras late tonight and Wednesday and approach Belize and the Yucatan peninsula late Wednesday. The NHC said the rains could result in life-threatening flash floods and mud slides. Tropical Storms Colin and Bonnie both had monetary impacts in the USA, with Bonnie racking up over half a million dollars in damage mainly over the Carolinas.
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The forecast is for 8 to 12 inches of rain with some amounts to 16 inches for portions of Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico.
