The conditions the hurricane brought upon were severe. It began on the morning of October 20,1998. Satellite images showed that there were unorganized thunderstorm clusters forming over the southern Caribbean and Northern Venezuela. On October 22, the clusters became confined into a tropical depression. Tropical Storm Mitch had come into existence before the day was out. The Storm continued to climax on the 23rd and 24th, but by the 25th there was a sudden change; Mitch’s central pressure fell from 1.77 inches to 26.73 inches in a matter of 34 hours. As chart B illustrates, Hurricane Mitch had tied Hurricane Camille (1969) for the fourth lowest pressure ever recorded in an Atlantic hurricane. Hurricane Mitch was named a Category 5 hurricane for maintaining it’s low pressure for a duration of 33 hours compared to Hurricane Camille’s(1969) and Hurricane Allen’s(1980) 24 hour long duration.
Mitch traveled alongside the northern coast of Honduras for two days. “Once onshore, Mitch meandered through the mountains of Honduras and continued to unload extreme amounts of rainfall,” states Mace Bentley and Steve Horstmeyer in “Monstrous Mitch”. “According to the National Climatic Data Center, estimated maximum total rainfall amounts over Honduras and Nicaragua ranged from 50 to 75 inches- and in one report an incredible 25 inches fell in six hours!” as stated in “Monstrous Mitch”. To make situations even worse, Mudflows and landslides occurred because of the steep terrain in both Nicaragua and Honduras. One mudslide in nothwest Nicaragua traveled 13 miles and dominated 10 communities. The death toll in this area was expected to reach 2,000.
Many Central American countries were finally getting back on their feet when Hurricane Mitch struck. Tropical Storm Mitch destroyed the economic systems in both Nicaragua and Honduras. The most devastating aspect of this storm was the loss of over 9,000 lives, making Hurricane Mitch the second deadliest Atlantic Hurricane, as recorded on chart A. While the families in Nicaragua and Honduras were struggling with their losses the economies in both countries were collapsing. According to “Monstrous Mitch”, $1.36 billion of damage was done in total to Nicaragua alone.The damage was in the form of ruined and killed banana trees. With the many killed banana trees, the future restoration of the economy of Honduras and Nicaragua became very doubtful. Although the coffee crops were unharmed because of their growing location, many of the mountain roads had disappeared, therefore making it hard to transport the coffee. Since the economies of both Nicaragua and Honduras depended on crops as their main exports, both countries had little faith in a restoration on their economy.
In conclusion, Hurricane Mitch was a extreme natural disaster that killed over 9,000 people. Maintaining it’s status for 33 hours, Hurricane Mitch caused mudflows and landslides. Leaving it’s mark as the storm that left both Nicaragua and Honduras in total devastation, Hurricane Mitch has become one of the 20th centuries’ most significant natural disasters.