(Reuters) -Hurricane Lisa is expected to make landfall in Belize later on Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in a bulletin, before bringing heavy rains across northern Guatemala and southeastern Mexico.
The Category 1 hurricane is about 55 miles (90 km) east-southeast of the capital Belize City, packing maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour (130 km per hour), the Miami-based weather forecaster said.
“Hurricane conditions are expected along the coast of Belize and the southeastern Yucatan Peninsula this afternoon,” it said, adding that a powerful storm surge there could lift tides some four to seven feet (one to two meters) above normal levels.
Guatemala’s disaster agency Conred said the first floods had hit Melchor de Menchos, the main border crossing with Belize, affecting 95 people and inflicting “moderate damage on 19 homes.
Belize’s national emergency organization said borders would close at 2 p.m. local time (2000 GMT) Wednesday, with ports and airports shuttering and public buses and water taxis halting their operations.
It said shelters were available across the country and advised people living in low-lying areas or vulnerable coastal communities to move to a safe location.
The NHC also warned of hurricane conditions between the Mexican city of Chetumal and Costa Maya, one of the country’s most popular cruise ports. Honduras’ northern coastline and Bay Islands could also see stormy weather, it said.
Mexico’s national meteorological service forecast heavy rains and thunderstorms over parts of the Yucatan Peninsula, with strong winds battering Quintana Roo.
The southeastern state is home to popular tourist spots such as Cancun, Tulum, and the island of Cozumel, famed for its scuba diving.
Swells generated by the storm could affect surf as far as Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, as well as other parts of Central America, the NHC said.
(Reporting by Sarah Morland in Mexico City and Enrique Garcia in Guatemala City; Additional reporting by Brijesh Patel and Kavya Guduru in Bengaluru; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Diane Craft)
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