Hurricane Stan left more than 40 dead across Central America and Mexico.
As Hurricane Stan approached, authorities in Veracruz, Tabasco, and Tamaulipas declared a state of maximum alert, urging residents to take shelter in designated safety centers. Initially a tropical storm, Stan quickly intensified into a Category 1 hurricane, according to the Saffir-Simpson scale.
By the time it swept through Central America, over 40 people had lost their lives, and more than 17,000 were displaced.
According to the NOAA (National Hurricane Center), Stan brought sustained winds of up to 120 km/h (75 mph), with even stronger gusts. The tropical storm collided with a cold front, worsening its impact. In northern Veracruz, the storm caused severe damage across 170 municipalities, affecting around 800,000 people and damaging approximately 21,000 homes.
In Mexico, torrential rains led to widespread flooding in Yucatán and Campeche, prompting the evacuation of 1,000 residents. Schools in Chiapas were closed entirely, and in Tabasco, authorities remained on high alert due to the risk of intense rain and flash floods.
Images of damage caused by Hurricane Stan in El Salvador.
Testimony:
“It all started on October 4. At first, the rain seemed normal, like in past years, and we thought it would stop. But it just kept getting worse—rain all day and night. The river’s level kept rising, and we didn’t expect it. We had seen it rise before, but never like this. We got comfortable thinking it would be the same as before. But this time, there was nowhere to run. We watched the houses closest to the river being swept away. The water kept rising, day by day, until we had no choice but to leave. We lost everything.”
— Isidoro Trinidad