Prolonged Drought Plagues Central America

Drought severely affects millions in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras

A prolonged, debilitating drought is severely affecting Central America, leading to food shortages and threatening food insecurity in addition to water famine across the region.

A farmer shows his maize crops severely damaged by the drought in Santa Cruz,  southern Honduras (Aug. 22, 2015). A  prolonged drought has affected at least 146 municipalities in Honduras. (Xinhua/Rafael Ochoa). More images…

“Since mid-July, nearly all of the Central America has experienced below-average rainfall, as the largest moisture deficits (<50 percent of normal) have been mainly observed in the Gulf of Fonseca region and in parts of northern Honduras according to satellite rainfall data. The drier than average rainfall has been preceded by both poor Primera rains season which has reportedly led to losses in maize and bean crops over the El Progreso, Zacapa, and Chiquimula departments of eastern Guatemala,” according to Climate Prediction Center.

Climate Prediction Center’s Central America Hazards Outlook