 Mitch at peak intensity just to the northeast of Honduras on 26 October | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 22 October 1998 |
| Extratropical | 5 November 1998 |
| Dissipated | 9 November 1998 |
| Category 5 major hurricane | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Highest winds | 180 mph (285 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 905 mbar (hPa); 26.72 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | >11,374 (Second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, deadliest in the satellite era) |
| Damage | $6.08 billion (1998 USD) |
| Areas affected | Central America (especially Honduras and Nicaragua), Yucatán Peninsula, South Florida, Jamaica, Ireland, United Kingdom |
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 1998 Atlantic hurricane season | |
| History
Effects Other wikis | |
Hurricane Mitch was the second-deadliest tropical cyclone in the Atlantic basin on record. Mitch caused 11,374 fatalities in Central America in 1998, including approximately 7,000 in Honduras and 3,800 in Nicaragua due to cataclysmic flooding from the slow motion of the storm. It was the deadliest hurricane in Central American history, surpassing Hurricane Fifi–Orlene, which killed slightly fewer people in the same area in 1974. Mitch was the deadliest Atlantic hurricane in the satellite era, and the second-deadliest on record in the Atlantic, only behind the Great Hurricane of 1780 which killed at least 22,000 people.
The thirteenth named storm, ninth hurricane, and third major hurricane of the 1998 Atlantic hurricane season, Mitch formed in the western Caribbean Sea on 22 October, and after responding to extremely favorable conditions, it rapidly strengthened to peak at Category 5 status, the highest possible rating on the Saffir–Simpson scale. After drifting southwestward and weakening, the hurricane hit Honduras as a minimal Category 1 hurricane. Mitch roved through Central America, regenerated in the Bay of Campeche, and ultimately impacted Florida as a strong tropical storm. It then became extratropical and accelerated northeastward across the North Atlantic, before dissipating on 9 November. At the time, Mitch was the strongest Atlantic hurricane observed in the month of October, though it has since been surpassed by Hurricane Wilma of the 2005 season. In addition, Mitch is the ninth-most intense Atlantic hurricane on record, tied with Hurricane Dean in 2007 in terms of pressure.
Being "the deadliest Atlantic hurricane" in over 200 years,[1] Mitch caused catastrophic impacts across its path, but the most disastrous impacts came from Honduras, which suffered over half of the total deaths. The president of Honduras, Carlos Roberto Flores, estimated that Mitch set back about 50 years of economic development. The storm wrecked about 35,000 houses and damaged another 50,000, leaving up to 1.5 million people homeless, about 20 percent of the country's population. Mitch directly caused $2.005 billion in damage,[nb 1] with an additional $1.8 billion in indirect costs. Most of the damage were ruined crops, and cash crop exports were cut by 9.4 percent in 1999, largely due to the storm. Over 70 percent of the transportation infrastructure was damaged, mostly damaged highways and bridges. Widespread areas experienced power outages, and about 70 percent of the country lost its water sources after the storm. In Tegucigalpa, a large landslide affected three neighborhoods and formed a temporary dam. Throughout the country, there were at least 7,000 fatalities, some reported in each department. Following the storm, officials in Honduras requested international assistance, which totaled $2.8 billion over a several-year period. Despite this, the gross domestic product began decreasing at the end of 1998, and contracted by 1.9 percent in 1999. Officials enacted a widespread curfew following the storm, and for 15 days temporarily restricted constitutional rights to maintain order. There were outbreaks of various diseases, and many residents faced food and water shortages.
Due to the slow motion from 29 October to 3 November, Hurricane Mitch dropped historic amounts of rainfall in Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, with unofficial reports of up to 75 inches (1,900 mm). Deaths due to catastrophic flooding made it the second deadliest Atlantic hurricane in history after the Great Hurricane of 1780; at least 11,374 people were confirmed to have been killed with over 11,000 left missing by the end of 1998; the true death toll is unknown. Additionally, roughly 2.7 million were left homeless as a result of the hurricane. Total damages caused by the hurricane were estimated to be around $6 billion (1998 USD). The name "Mitch" was retired, and will not be used for another Atlantic tropical cyclone.[2]
- ^ Viets, Patricia (17 August 2001). "NOAA delivers life-saving disaster-preparedness infrastructure and systems to Central America". ReliefWeb. Archived from the original on 10 July 2019. Retrieved 10 July 2019.
- ^ "Tropical Cyclone Naming History and Retired Names". NOAA. Archived from the original on 27 June 2012. Retrieved 10 July 2019.
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