Saturday, September 12, 2026 — Morning Edition

Cossette López presented her credentials to OAS Secretary General Albert Ramdin in Washington, formally taking up her post as Honduras's permanent representative to the Organization of American States.

Also reported by: La Prensa

Honduras's ambassador to Spain said about 2,000 more Honduran workers have been pre-selected for farm jobs there, adding to 1,100 already in the country, with selection beginning in October and arrivals set for January.

Leaders in construction and tourism say they can absorb thousands of Hondurans returning after the end of Temporary Protected Status (TPS), pointing to demand for bilingual, skilled workers but stressing the need for government coordination.

President Asfura blamed the widespread blackouts and rationing on peak-hour demand and fuel shortages at generating plants, and said energy reforms passed by Congress await a final review before publication and that roughly 1,500 megawatts will be put out to tender to stabilize the grid.

Honduras is adopting artificial intelligence in industry but lags regional peers because of gaps in infrastructure and advanced skills, with companies using AI mainly to automate physical tasks rather than to build complex models.

Small-business owners in the Sula Valley report daily losses of about L10 million (roughly $400,000) from six- to eight-hour outages in September, with three blackouts so far running up some L30 million in damage.

A major failure in Central America's regional power grid at 11:47 a.m. Thursday cut electricity across Honduras and neighboring Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador; ENEE and the national dispatch center began restoring power gradually, with no firm timeline for full recovery.

Also reported by: Once Noticias, Radio América

A kidney-disease patient urged Congress to approve without delay a promised subsidy for more than 7,000 Hondurans with the condition, citing treatment costs and a worsening health crisis.

Cindy Yasmin Contreras, a 30-year-old nurse at Hospital de Occidente in Santa Rosa de Copán known for her emergency and neonatal work during the COVID-19 pandemic, has died after a serious illness, prompting an outpouring of grief across the region.

Chepes Beach on Utila has been named to Corona Beach 100 – World's Best Beaches 2026, an international ranking that places Honduras's Bay Islands among the world's top destinations and spotlights their marine ecosystems and natural attractions.

A 122-member Colombian marching band from Liceo Lunita de Chía in Cundinamarca arrived in San Pedro Sula to perform at the centennial of Instituto José Trinidad Reyes on September 13 and in Honduras's Independence Day parade on September 15.

The San Pedro Sula Philharmonic Orchestra, 90% Honduran, will perform at Carnegie Hall in New York on November 30, with a fundraising gala concert in Roatán on September 13 to support the performance.

The 27th Roatán International Fishing Tournament opened September 10, drawing sport fishermen from Honduras, Belize, the Cayman Islands, the US, Central America, Europe and Africa, with top billfish prizes of up to $25,000 and a spot for winners in the 2027 Offshore World Championship.

Motagua defeated Platense to reach the semifinals, with Marco Tulio Vega scoring in the match as the team chases the title.

Police arrested a 21-year-old man in Roatán on suspicion of murdering former footballer Kenny Martínez, 22, who was shot on September 1 in Punta Gorda; investigators are still searching for a second suspect.

Also reported by: El Heraldo, Diez, TuNota (Canal 5 / TSI)

Prosecutors say the trafficking organization linked to former footballer Óscar Bonilla received at least six metric tons of cocaine from Colombia, using fast boats to offload shipments at sea before stashing the drugs and moving them gradually through La Mosquitia and the Honduran Caribbean.

A 30-year-old man was found shot dead in Choloma alongside a sign bearing a message about involvement with married women; authorities are investigating the motive and whether the sign is linked to the killing.