Tropical Storm Eta & Hurricane Iota: Six Weeks Later

As of 22 December 2020

Carchá, Eta & Iota’s impact adding to existing crises After the impacts of Tropical Storm Eta and Hurricane Iota in Central America within two weeks of each other, Tropical Storm Eta and Hurricane Iota struck Central America in November, vulnerable communities such as Campur in the Carchá bringing high winds, severe flooding and landslides in countries dealing with township of Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, have been waiting longstanding vulnerabilities and the fallout of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. weeks for floodwaters to recede and allow authorities and humanitarian partners access to provide critical assistance. Photo: Luis Echeverría Tropical Storm Eta and Hurricane with official numbers from these Iota made landfall on 3 November countries collectively amounting to at and 16 November, respectively, least 7.3 million people affected. with both striking before p2 Key Priorities moving westward over The storms’ aftermath in Central p3 Honduras and Guatemala. The storms brought America is adding to the longstanding p4 Guatemala wind speeds as high as 240 km/h and vulnerabilities of a region prone to p5 Nicaragua rainfalls up to 600mm. Flooding and cyclical drought and flooding, chronic landslides damaged or destroyed homes violence, gender-based violence p6 Humanitarian Response & Financing and infrastructure in south-eastern and displacement within and across , parts of Belize, Guatemala, El borders, high poverty and unequal Salvador, Nicaragua, and access to basic services, food, clean , nearly all of Honduras and water and livelihoods. parts of northern . Honduras and Guatemala Beyond the immediate material already had a combined damage, Eta and Iota drove thousands of people to shelters with limited 4.6 million people in need health security capacities for prior to the COVID-19 preventing COVID-19 spread, stoking pandemic and Eta and Iota fears of localized outbreaks as affected health facilities and networks worked Moreover, Eta and Iota have dealt to restore functionality. The storms a serious blow to highly vulnerable also damaged or destroyed crops and communities with existing needs that harvests that were critical sources have been greatly aggravated by the of livelihoods and food security for COVID-19 pandemic for much of many families already facing economic 2020, creating a complex web of inter- The boundaries and names shown and the designations hardships as a result of the pandemic. used on this map do not imply official endorsement or related needs that may persist for years acceptance by the United Nations. to come. The numbers presented are for orientation and not Honduras and Guatemala, which form conclusive. Sources are reports from national authorities from public websites. part of the Northern Countries of

Creation date: 22 December 2020 Central America (NCA) along with Sources: ReliefWeb , and Nicaragua were hit Feedback: [email protected] especially hard by the twin storms, www.unocha.org/rolac | www.reliefweb.int Key Priorities 2

Honduras Affected families are staying in overcrowded or makeshift shelters, exposed to dire conditions with limited access to food, water, health services or protection. Photo: UNFPA

CAMP COORDINATION & CAMP EDUCATION FOOD SECURITY MANAGEMENT / SHELTER

Dire conditions and overcrowding in The prolonged use of schools as shelters With the storms damaging hundreds of shelters, as well as an ongoing shortfall is leading to the deterioration of physical thousands of hectares of basic crops, in response resources and targeted spaces, which will limit access to vulnerable communities already facing assistance, are factors that are greatly education, endanger ongoing schooling hardships over the COVID-19 pandemic increasing health and protection risks, and jeopardize the right to a education for will have less access to food, which will especially for women and children. children and adolescents. deteriorate food and nutritional security.

HEALTH INDIGENOUS PEOPLE LOGISTICS

Affected people and response personnel The storms struck Alta Verapaz and Izabal Several communities remain isolated require health security supplies to prevent in Guatemala, the North Caribbean Coast following the storms due to damaged further spread of COVID-19. Public health Autonomous Region in Nicaragua and transportation infrastructure, road measures are also needed to mitigate Atlantic coast departments in Honduras, networks, airports and sea ports, endemic diseases as well as water-, food- areas home to vulnerable indigenous and limiting access required for completing and vector-borne illnesses. afro-ethnic groups now facing added risks. evaluations and delivering critical aid.

WATER, SANITATION & NUTRITION PROTECTION HYGIENE

Field reports cite substandard child People forcibly displaced by violence Providing safe water and promoting nutrition practices, indicating a need are among the millions affected by best hygiene practices in affected to promote best practices, including the storms, which together with the communities requires scaled-up breastfeeding, and provide nutritionally COVID-19 pandemic, will lead to resources. There is a need for hygiene appropriate food and preparation greater insecurity and cause further kits and infection control to prevent supplies in and out of shelters. displacement and migration. COVID-19 and water-borne diseases. Honduras 3

Honduras PEOPLE AFFECTED UN personnel continue to provide assistance to thousands of vulnerable families still in official and makeshift shelters as they 4.5M await to return to their communities. Photo: UNFPA Honduras’ COPECO civil protection agency indicates that the storms’ Nearly two months after Eta and Iota’s criminal violence in shelters and combined impact affected 199 of the impacts, there are communities that affected communities the Sula Valley. country’s 208 municipalities, with 103 remain isolated due to infrastructure reporting impacts from both storms. damage and floodwaters not yet fully The long-term consequences of receding. Eta and Iota’s impact on safety, food security, shelter, livelihoods PEOPLE IN Reports from the flood-prone Sula and health have already begun to K SHELTERS Valley, home to the country’s industrial unfold as a caravan of 600 people in 92 hub of San Pedro Sula in the Cortés Honduras departed for Guatemala Hundreds of thousands of people remain department and a substantial part from San Pedro Sula in December. in shelter, with no foreseeable return of national agricultural production, Honduran security personnel stopped amid damage to, or destruction of, more indicate there are communities still the caravan near the border, as many than 70,000 homes and persistent rains buried under mud, with national did not have the required travel from seasonal cold fronts. authorities and humanitarian partners documents or a negative COVID-19 working to gain access and provide test. critical assistance, especially for water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). The storms’ impacts on San Pedro PEOPLE WITHOUT Sula have all but paralyzed the 250K HEALTH ACCESS Strained shelter capacities continue to economy and caused widespread crop spark concerns about access to health loss, which the Government fears Damage to primary healthcare facilities and WASH over COVID-19 outbreaks may push Honduras as a whole to the have left a quarter of a million people and other illnesses, and protection, brink of food shortages. without access to badly needed medical especially given ongoing reports of services, with 77 per cent of these people in Cortés. Guatemala 4

PEOPLE WITH Guatemala NEEDS 1.8M More than a month after Eta and Iota struck Guatemala, several communities remain underwater. The San Carlos University in Guatemala estimates that some communities may not see floodwaters recede for six months. Photo: Luis Echeverría Guatemala’s CONRED civil protection agency reports significant damage in 16 of 22 departments, with Alta Verapaz, Although Eta and Iota’s impacts in and 44,500 hectares during Iota are Izabal, Quiché, Huehuetenango, Petén, Guatemala are not as widespread as especially concerning given chronic Zacapa and Chiquimula taking the brunt. neighbouring Honduras, the affected undernutrition and food insecurity departments present similarly severe that have long posed grave risks for needs, especially in the departments vulnerable communities in Guatemala; PEOPLE IN of Alta Verapaz (population 1.2 according to the 2020 Regional 133K SHELTERS million people) and Izabal (population Overview of Food Security And 408,000), where there are communities Nutrition in Latin America and the More than 5,200 people remain in that have lost virtually everything due Caribbean, Guatemala’s prevalence of official shelters and 127,900 in unofficial to damage to homes and infrastructure, undernourished people has remained shelters. With many communities still loss of livelihoods, damage to or loss above 16 per cent since 2010, well flooded, there are concerns over the of health centres, schools and road above other Central American needs arising from prolonged stays. networks. countries. These two departments both lost 49 Beyond the immediate restoration per cent of all agricultural supplies of WASH services, food support, FAMILIES AFFECTED and are increasingly exposed to emergency health, protection services 267K BY CROP LOSSES unsafe water, with Izabal in particular and COVID-19 mitigation measures in reporting that 86 per cent of its and out of shelters, Guatemala requires Vulnerable families already facing population are unable to treat and extensive long-term agricultural longstanding food insecurity aggravated disinfect their water supply. support to reactive productive cycles to by COVID-19 are now at even higher risk provide food and livelihoods. following Eta and Iota’s impact on crops The losses to crops and harvest and harvests. across 119,900 hectares during Eta Nicaragua 5

Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua Puerto Cabezas in Nicaragua’s northern Caribbean region suffered a direct impact from Eta and Iota, leaving many vulnerable communities in need of assistance to rebuild homes after the storms made landfall nearby as major hurricanes. Photo: WFP

PEOPLE PEOPLE IN DAMAGE & 3M EXPOSED 1.8M AFFECTED $738M LOSSES

According to the Government, some 3 Eta and Iota ultimately affected more Following evaluations of the damage million people across Nicaragua were than half the people exposed to their and losses incurred by Eta and Iota, the exposed to Eta and Iota’s major storm- nearly identical paths of destruction, Government reports that the total cost force winds and flooding, or, about half becoming one of the worst disasters to of the damage, losses and needs will of the national population. ever strike Nicaragua. come out to about 6.2 per cent of GDP.

Eta and Iota both made landfall as major hurricanes over million), the social sector which covers partial or complete Nicaragua’s north-eastern Caribbean shores, striking the damage to homes (US$183.7 million), the environment North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region (RACCN, (US$141 million) and the productive sector covering per its Spanish acronym) and carving nearly identical paths agriculture and tourism livelihoods (US$48.9 million). across northern Nicaragua en route to eastern Honduras. The Government reported the evacuations of nearly 160,600 Government-led response efforts are providing roofing people during the storms, many of whom sheltered in family supplies and food security bonuses to offset the storms’ homes and were able to return to their communities - as of 10 impacts on housing and food access. With support from December, there were only 1,000 people still in shelters. the UN and partners in country, the Government has also worked to restore telecommunications, access and basic water Following Government’s evaluation of the damage, which and power supplies, as well as provide ongoing medical care extended as far west and south to Pacific coast areas on the through service networks, mobile clinics and medical brigades other side of where Eta and Iota made landfall, officials report in affected communities. significant damage and losses to infrastructure (US$361.9 Humanitarian Response & Financing 6

ORGANIZATIONS 64 REPORTING

Sixty-four partners report more than 2,800 response activities corresponding to 11 sectors, with activities reported in 178 municipalities across 46 departments in four countries.

Organizations by Sector

WASH 41

Food Security 32

CCCM/Shelter 25

Protection 24

Health 23

Coordination 11

Education 8

Logistics 8

Cash Transfer* 3 Juticalpa, Honduras UNDAC team members accompany the UN Resident Coordinator and OCHA to the Juticalpa municipality in Olancho for a joint Early Recovery 2 needs evaluation following Eta and Iota’s impacts across virtually all of Honduras. Photo: UNDAC/Antonio Miranda *Does not include cash transfers by sector. Please refer to 345W for more detailed information.

RESPONSE Through OCHA’s 345W reporting The scope and scale of the platform, organizations responding Honduras: CERF allocation humanitarian consequences in to the effects of Eta and Iota in For more information, visit: https://bit.ly/2WBEDbV Honduras and Guatemala prompted Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador, where impacts ALLOCATED TO calls for international assistance to M HONDURAS support government-led efforts to were comparatively limited and $3.9 respond to priority needs in WASH, ably covered by national response PEOPLE shelter, food security, health and presence and international support 117K TARGETED protection, among others. in country, are consolidating their activity information by location, sector These response efforts initially faced and type of assistance, allowing for Guatemala: CERF allocation logistics and access challenges due a comprehensive overview of the For more information, visit: https://bit.ly/3aB7aqr to flooded and/or damaged roads, response to date. airports and sea ports, preventing ALLOCATED TO GUATEMALA national authorities and humanitarian Please scan QR code to access $2.5M partners from reaching isolated OCHA's regional 3W for Tropical PEOPLE Storm Eta/Hurricane Iota response TARGETED communities to evaluate their needs in Central America or visit: https:// 216K and provide critical assistance. While bit.ly/33mbW6O access has been gradually restored, several communities remain cut off FINANCING Honduras: Flash Appeal (as of 23 Dec) with an unknown level of needs. For more information, visit: https://bit.ly/34A2Ljy OCHA is also supporting emergency UN Disaster Assessment Coordination financing through mechanisms and Funded through plan Funded outside plan Required (UNDAC) teams deployed to processes including allocations from US$69.2M TOTAL REQUIREMENTS Honduras and Guatemala at their the UN Central Emergency Response $8.1M $61.2M respective government’s request Fund (CERF) and emergency appeals, 11.6% funded through plan 88.4% unmet requirements to strengthen coordination and working closely with sector partners information management, with teams at the regional and national levels to US$50.8M FUNDING TO HONDURAS 2020 focus humanitarian response along in each country working closely with $8.1M $42.8M authorities and partners at national actionable priorities to save lives and and sub-national level. respond to urgent needs. 32.9% funded through plan 84.2% funded outside plan