Tropical Storm Nadine Impacts Old Capital and Western Belize  

Tropical Storm Nadine roared to life overnight, transforming into a formidable force by Saturday morning. By 10 a.m., it slammed into Belize just south of the city. Winds clocked in at a blistering 50 miles per hour. Heavy downpours were most evident on Ambergris Caye, Caye Caulker and in the Corozal District.  In Belize City, despite heavy rains, several streetside vendors were operational. Meanwhile, over in the west, the storm left its imprint in different ways. News Five’s Paul Lopez reports.

 

Paul Lopez, Reporting

Amidst the pounding winds and torrential downpour of Tropical Storm Nadine, it was business as usual in Belize City. Streetside vendors were out selling their products.

 

Street Side Vendor #1

“I decided to come out because money need fih mek and if I don’t come out no money nuh mek. So, I need fih the out yah to make sure I create this service fih customers weh need it most. Reasonable stuff check.”

 

Street Side Vendor #2

“I got people, customers weh notice I come out. But I bring out only hald of what I usually bring out. This is the last amount weh lef out ah the half. I didn’t even bring out pork. This is the last amount left out of that half.”

 

Despite Tropical Storm Nadine making landfall, the Belize City market next to the bus terminal remained bustling on Saturday. Vendors carried on with business, even as NEMO strongly advised halting all operations due to the storm.

 

Daniel Mendez, National Emergency Coordinator, NEMO

“Our messaging had been clear in regards to taking this seriously. We strongly recommended that businesses closed. We cannot take it for granted that this is a small storm. We don’t know what the impact will be.”

 

According to the National Hydrological Service of Belize, the Macal River, out west, rose approximately fifteen feet above normal levels, while the Mopan River continues to rise tonight.

Tenielle Hendy, Chief Hydrologist, NHS

“Recalling from memory, I believe the Macal has reached about fifteen feet, five point one two meters, which is about fifteen feet from normal flow. For Mopan right now, it is about six to ten feet above what is normal. But this system is still rising. So, that is still not the peak of this flood event we are going through.”

 

The Macal River runs through the Twin Towns of San Ignacio and Santa Elena. The low-lying bridge that connects the two communities became impassable on Saturday afternoon. By Sunday morning, floodwaters had started to recede. Mayor Earl Trapp of the Twin Towns spoke to News Five about a riverbank project along the Macal River that had been inaugurated just eight days prior, only to be swept away by the floods. Trapp clarified that he had no involvement in the project.

 

Earl Trapp, Mayor, SI/SE

“All of a sudden, the minister and area representatives came up with this of which I was not a planned. I am for the sidewalk and for the stage. I am not for the beach, because one little terential rain and it washes away.”

 

Paul Lopez

“So now the beach has washed away.”

Earl Trapp

“Yes, it was right in front of that stage. That is gone. So, now it means if you have a flood every month every month you will have to put back sand. I think we can do better if we can analyze the situation properly and yes with residents, I think we could make better informed decisions.”

 

Flood waters also destroyed a pedestrian bridge in San Ignacio. The low-lying bridge that connects the Twin Towns remains impassable. The Iguana Creek Bridge was also flooded, and that remains impassable tonight. One resident in that area visited the bridge on Sunday morning to assess the flood waters. She owns a farm near the river. Her farm was devastated by flood waters in 2020.

 

Denise Gordon, Resident, Blackman Eddy

“For now it doesn’t look really bad when compared to other years. So, for now to me it looks ok and it seems like it is going down fast.”

Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.