Tropical Storm Bonnie could bring flooding to Caribbean and Central American countries

A potential tropical storm threatens to sweep the coasts of Central America and the Caribbean, bringing heavy rains, flooding and landslides to some countries, according to the US National Hurricane Center (NHC).

According to the most recent information from the NHC, potential tropical cyclone two, which would bear the name Bonnie, will bring tropical storm conditions to the San Andrés Islands in Colombia and off the coasts of the Caribbean Sea in Costa Rica and Nicaragua.

Meanwhile, the Honduran Office of Risk Management and Containment of National Risks, Copeco, said in a statement that it declared a nationwide green alert for Hurricane Bonnie.

What is known so far

The NHC has been monitoring since mid-week the thunderstorm area over the northwest Gulf, which is slowly moving westward, approaching the Texas coast.

At dawn on Friday (30), the potential tropical storm was moving at about 32 km / h towards the southwest coast of the United States, with maximum sustained winds of 65 km / h, according to the NHC.

The National Hurricane Center further identifies Bonnie as “potential tropical cyclone two” and predicts:

• Flash floods and landslides in some areas of influence in Nicaragua and Costa Rica;
• “Hurricane conditions” this Friday afternoon along the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua;
• In Honduras, Copeco expects the potential tropical storm to become a Category 1 hurricane, affecting southwestern, central and southeastern Honduras and with rains along the border with El Salvador;
• In San Andrés, Colombia, the Colombian Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies, Ideam, has issued an alert for the likelihood of a tropical storm. According to Ideam, there is a “high probability” of winds close to 65 km/h occurring over the Colombian Caribbean Sea and the archipelago of San Andrés and Providencia, on Thursday night and Friday morning.

Colombian President Iván Duque said there is “constant monitoring” of Bonnie and “constant communication” with authorities in the San Andrés and Providencia archipelago. “All the preparedness and alert mechanisms are in place to deal with any event.”

storm formation

On Wednesday, potential tropical cyclone two was located about 160 kilometers east-southeast of Curaçao. It was moving rapidly westward near the northern coast of Venezuela. The NHC predicted that Bonnie “could become a tropical storm at any moment.”

Tropical storm warnings were in effect as of midweek for several southern Caribbean countries, with warnings for heavy rain, localized flash flooding and tropical storm-force wind gusts.

The official forecast predicts a strong tropical storm hitting Central America on Friday night, weakening as it crosses land and emerging in the Pacific, where it will strengthen again.

Unlike Hurricane Agatha, which hit Mexico earlier this year, broke up and contributed to what eventually became Alex in the Atlantic, the system must also remain intact in Central America. If that happens, the storm will retain the Bonnie name even as it crosses the Pacific Ocean.