Honduras Weather News

A magnitude 4.4 earthquake struck off Central America's Pacific coast at a depth of 37 kilometers on the night of July 28, with Honduras's emergency agency COPECO monitoring seismic activity.

Cenaos says a tropical wave and Pacific moisture will bring scattered light showers to southern and southwestern Honduras on Tuesday, July 28, while the north, center, and departments of Olancho and Colón may see brief showers by late afternoon, as the dry season's canícula keeps all rainfall weak and intermittent.

A tropical wave moving into Honduras on Wednesday will bring rain across most of the country, including the capital, temporarily breaking the dry spell in central, southern, and eastern regions amid a seasonal dry period expected to last through early September.

The body of Mauricio Colindres, 22, was found in Olancho on July 26, two days after a fishing boat carrying five young men capsized in heavy rain and wind at the Patuca III reservoir; three survived, and a second victim was also recovered.

Climate experts say El Niño will intensify between October and November, bringing little relief to Honduras's drought-stricken dry corridor, where farmers report near-total crop losses and warn the crisis will persist for decades without adaptation measures.

Javier Rodolfo Chávez, 44, from Villanueva in Cortés, drowned in Lake Yojoa when a sudden storm caused rough waves that swamped the small fishing boat he and friends were in.

Tegucigalpa recorded 316.2 mm of rainfall through July 22, falling 18.4% below the historical average of 387.7 mm, as above-normal July rains have yet to offset shortfalls from a dry May and June.

Luis Ángel Guifarro Escobar and Mauricio Benítez died when their fishing boat capsized on the Patuca III reservoir in Olancho on July 24 after sudden high winds and heavy rain struck while five young men were aboard.

Honduras's emergency agency declared a 48-hour green alert for Gracias a Dios due to heavy rains from a tropical wave and upper-level trough, warning of flash flooding and river overflow in eastern and northern regions.

Facing prolonged drought that is shrinking reservoir levels, Tegucigalpa's mayor Juan Diego Zelaya announced that water-rationing cycles will widen from every 7 days to every 9 days starting next week, aiming to stretch supplies until September rains begin.

Honduras's government will provide emergency food aid to approximately 40,000 families affected by drought in the southern region, and also plans infrastructure repairs and water projects to address longer-term effects of the dry spell.

A trough on Friday and an incoming tropical wave on Saturday will bring scattered to moderate rain to most of Honduras through Sunday, with daytime temperatures reaching 38°C (100°F) in the south, though forecasters say the rainfall will not relieve the ongoing drought affecting 75 municipalities.

The National Autonomous University of Honduras warns that rainfall could drop 30–40% below average starting in October across the Dry Corridor, the south, and Tegucigalpa as El Niño strengthens, threatening water supplies and the autumn harvest.

Tropical Storm Genevieve formed in the Pacific Ocean on July 24 and is expected to intensify into a hurricane, but U.S. and Mexican meteorological authorities say it is tracking away from land and will not affect Honduras.

A tropical wave passing over Honduras on Saturday and Sunday, July 25–26, is forecast to bring significant rainfall nationwide, though temperatures will remain hot across all regions.

The Honduran Navy has evacuated 258 people from Gracias a Dios department over the past 24 hours as intense rain and flooding from the Kruta River swelled, with 112 rescued from the hardest-hit communities of Tikiraya and Lakunka.

Drought linked to El Niño has pushed Honduras's disaster agency (COPECO) to place 75 municipalities in the dry corridor under indefinite yellow alert, while 49 remain on green alert and 113 are under monitoring for reduced rainfall across six departments.

Tropical Storm Bertha, with sustained winds of 80 km/h, was tracking toward the Louisiana coast from a position 147 km east of New Orleans and poses no direct threat to Honduras, though authorities continue monitoring the Atlantic hurricane season.

Congress unanimously approved a measure requiring the emergency agency Copeco, the Agriculture Ministry, and the municipal association Amhon to report within two weeks on drought conditions affecting 75 municipalities in the Dry Corridor, where El Niño has cut rainfall by half.

Honduras is spending 62 million lempiras (roughly $2.5 million) to aid 75 municipalities hit by El Niño-driven drought, with 38 facing the highest food-security risks and receiving priority support for water, food, health care, and irrigation.

Honduras's emergency agency raised drought alerts across 237 of the country's 298 municipalities due to reduced rainfall linked to El Niño, with 75 municipalities in the dry corridor placed under yellow alert indefinitely.

Over 30,000 sacks of food worth 4,000 lempiras (about $154) per household are being distributed across 12 municipalities in Honduras's dry corridor to 15,229 families who lost crops to drought.

A shallow 3.1-magnitude earthquake struck 64 kilometers north of Tegucigalpa on July 21 at 12:35 a.m., with no reported injuries or damage.

Heavy rains have inundated communities in Gracias a Dios on Honduras's northern coast, prompting the Navy to evacuate 146 people from Baicán and Rats Disguan to a shelter, with further rainfall expected to increase the risk.

Residents in earthquake-affected areas are returning to damaged homes despite ongoing structural concerns and persistent fear of aftershocks.

Climate experts warn that El Niño strengthening could prolong the dry season (canícula) from its usual six weeks to 45–60 days, reducing rainfall by 40–60% and straining water supplies, agriculture, and hydroelectric power across Honduras, with Tegucigalpa's reservoirs at critical levels.

A upper-level trough and tropical wave will bring widespread rain and thunderstorms across Honduras on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the heaviest rainfall expected Wednesday in the southwestern region.

Sunday will be mostly dry across Honduras, though scattered weak to moderate showers are expected in the western region due to a surface trough; temperatures will peak at 40°C (104°F) in Choluteca and Valle.

Tegucigalpa is experiencing its driest summer in ten years, with critical water-supply levels prompting UMAPS to implement emergency measures including well drilling, water-truck distribution, rationing, and waste reduction.

Over 15,000 families in Choluteca and El Paraíso departments are receiving food rations of about 160 lb (about 72 kg) valued at L3,000–L4,000 (about $120–$160) each as emergency drought relief, with 900 sacks distributed daily from COPECO facilities.