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Hurricane Felix death toll rises Hurricane Felix death toll rises
(about 4 hours later)
At least 98 people have been killed by Hurricane Felix in Nicaragua and Honduras and dead bodies are still being recovered, officials say. At least 98 people have been killed and thousands left homeless after Hurricane Felix lashed remote Nicaraguan villages earlier this week, officials say.
The storm hit land in north-eastern Nicaragua on Tuesday as a maximum strength category five storm. Dozens of people are still missing and rescuers are trawling the jungles and open seas trying to find survivors.
Dozens of people are still missing and rescuers are searching the open seas and remote jungle. Nicaragua and Honduras are on alert for heavy floods in the storm's aftermath.
Tens of thousands of people have been left homeless, but emergency aid is beginning to reach affected areas. Officials are only now uncovering the scale of devastation caused by Felix, which hit land as a maximum strength category five storm on Tuesday.
In Honduras, 52 Miskito Indians have been washed ashore alive, government officials said. Nicaragua bore the brunt of the hurricane, with winds of up 256km/h (160mph), although there was also flooding in neighbouring Honduras.
They had been swept off a tiny island and survived the storm by clinging to planks and lifebuoys. Aid agencies are struggling to reach the worst-affected area, around the Nicaraguan town of Puerto Cabezas. In one case, soldiers distributed food to a remote village where residents had been surviving on nothing but coconuts.
Fishing communities of Miskito Indians live on island reefs along the Honduran-Nicaraguan border. People are out in the open, they have lost everything Nancy EnriquezLocal mayor class="" href="/1/hi/sci/tech/4588149.stm">Animated guide: Hurricanes Villagers in the north-eastern region complained that officials had not given them enough warning of the hurricane.
'Sucked into sea' Lucia Parista Mora, 43, told the Associated Press news agency that many people were out in fishing boats when the storm hit, unaware of what was in store.
On Thursday, 25 bodies were found floating in the debris-strewn sea, officials in Honduras said. She feared many more bodies would be found in the ocean.
People are out in the open, they have lost everything Nancy EnriquezLocal mayor class="" href="/1/hi/sci/tech/4588149.stm">Animated guide: Hurricanes "We want them to bring them back here, even if it is just bones," she said.
The area is populated mainly by Miskito Indians, who make a living from lobster fishing.
Many of the victims were reportedly travelling by boat when they were hit by giant waves, while others appeared to have been sucked into the sea from their houses on the coast.Many of the victims were reportedly travelling by boat when they were hit by giant waves, while others appeared to have been sucked into the sea from their houses on the coast.
Some of the bodies were washed up on beaches, officials and eyewitnesses said. Rescuers have found bodies floating on the debris-strewn sea, while other bodies have been washed up on beaches.
In Nicaragua, emergency aid has been airlifted into Puerto Cabezas, the capital of the worst-hit region, but food and fuel remain scarce. Emergency aid has been flown into Puerto Cabezas - mainly from other Central American countries - but food and fuel remain scarce.
"People are out in the open - they have lost everything. Children are exposed to the rain," Nancy Enriquez, mayor of the coastal community of Bilwi, told AFP news agency.
The authorities say many of those affected live in some of the country's most remote and impoverished jungle areas, making the delivery of aid even more difficult.
Mexican deaths
The UN's World Food Programme has sent nearly five tons of food aid, with supplies also arriving from as far away as Japan.The UN's World Food Programme has sent nearly five tons of food aid, with supplies also arriving from as far away as Japan.
Hurricane Felix had winds of up to 160mph (256km/h) when it made landfall.
Correspondents say the storm has revived memories throughout Central America of Hurricane Mitch, which killed some 10,000 people in 1998.Correspondents say the storm has revived memories throughout Central America of Hurricane Mitch, which killed some 10,000 people in 1998.
Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Henriette on Thursday dumped rain on the US states on Arizona and New Mexico, before dissipating.Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Henriette on Thursday dumped rain on the US states on Arizona and New Mexico, before dissipating.
Henriette - then at hurricane strength - hit Mexico's western Sonora state with winds of up to 120km/h (75mph), a day after lashing Baja California.Henriette - then at hurricane strength - hit Mexico's western Sonora state with winds of up to 120km/h (75mph), a day after lashing Baja California.
It has left nine people dead in Mexico, with a further 5,000 people still being housed in shelters as more flood warnings are put in place.It has left nine people dead in Mexico, with a further 5,000 people still being housed in shelters as more flood warnings are put in place.
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