Gamma's Rain Swamps C. America
Tropical Storm Gamma deluged the Caribbean coast of Central America on Saturday, killing at least six people, three in flooding in Honduras and three in the crash of a small plane belonging to a Belize lodge owned by U.S. filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola.
Gamma, the 24th named storm of an already record-breaking Atlantic hurricane season, was drifting erratically off the coast of northern Honduras and was not likely to strengthen into a hurricane, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.
With maximum sustained winds of 45 mph, the storm's forecast path shifted late Saturday to the northeast, indicating that Gamma's center could move over eastern Cuba and the Bahamas in the coming days.
The southern half of Cuba and the Cayman Islands are expected to received 3-6 inches of rain.
At 1 a.m. EST Sunday, the storm was about 225 miles east-southeast of Belize City and about 70 miles north-northeast of Limon, Honduras. It was moving erratically to the northeast at about 6 mph.
"We don't expect much strengthening over the next 24 hours," National Hurricane Center forecaster Jennifer Pralgo said Saturday evening. "But right now it's still affecting Central America because it's moving so slowly."
Hardest-hit was Honduras, where flash floods slowed the flow of emergency aid, said Luis Gomez, the country's emergency coordinator.
"People who are cut off or affected by the rains should ration water and food on their own because we won't get to them until weather conditions improve," Gomez said.
He said at least three Hondurans died and 13 more were missing, but he had no details on individual cases.
Gomez said five major rivers overflowed their banks, washing out bridges and highways and sparking flooding. Officials evacuated more than 5,000 people.
Nelly Soliman, the mayor of El Progreso, 100 miles north of Tegucigalpa, said all major sections of that city had been flooded.
Heavy winds and rains were also pounding the Bay Islands, off the Honduran coast, Hugo Arevalo, coordinator of a national disaster-response committee, said at a news conference. A tropical storm warning remained in effect for the islands.
"The damage is terrible along all the northern coast of the country," he said. "Many of our countrymen are suffering but we are doing all we can to bring them food, medicine and clothing."
In Belize, search teams were blaming bad weather associated with Gamma for the crash of a private plane belonging to an exclusive lodge owned by U.S. filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola. A Belizean pilot and two unidentified passengers were killed, police spokesman G. Michael Reid said.
The crash killed Belizean pilot Rene Ram and two guests, said Kathleen Talbert, a representative for Coppola. Talbert declined to release the names of the guests.
Heavy cloud cover made it difficult for a rescue helicopter to reach the crash site, Reid said.
Wreckage from the plane was discovered on the 7,200-acre property of the Hidden Valley Inn in the Mountain Pine Ridge area, a resort manager said.
The aircraft disappeared Friday, last making radio contact with air controllers 10 minutes into its 35-minute flight to the Blancaneux Lodge near the western border with Guatemala.
Rescuers were still searching for five Belizean fishermen from the northern fishing village of Sarteneja near the Mexican border who disappeared Friday. Their 20-foot vessel was capsized by a large wave, police said.
Gamma extended the Atlantic's record-breaking storm season. The previous record of 21 named storms had stood since 1933.