Hurricane Mitch Hits Central America

Hurricane Mitch has hit and destroyed many countries in Central America. The death toll
was estimated to be around 19,000 people. Mitch hit hardest in Honduras 14,600 dead and
the damage was worth 3.8 million dollars. This hurricane was the most powerful of the 1998
Atlantic Hurricane Season. Hurricane Mitch hit Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, El
Salvador, Belize, Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Jamaica and the USA.

Hurricane Mitch affected many of the poor countries in Central America and they will find it
difficult to pay for the damage. The hurricane affected the landscape and the people. The
effects on the landscape were that the winds of the hurricane flattened crops, destroyed
houses and power lines, caused soiled erosion which causes rivers to flood. The floods
destroyed buildings, made 1500km of roads impassable and it left behind several metres of
mud. The effects on the people were that the flattened crops ruined harvests and farming is
the main career in Central America with farm products being the main exports. The houses
that were destroyed left two million people homeless. The reasons that most people died
because the landslides buried people, the floods drowned many people and the impassable
roads left people stranded and unable to help. There were three stages to the aid effort,
stage one was to rescue people, stage two was to provide emergency supplies and stage
three was for long-term recovery.