The intensity of Hurricane Otto passing through Central America was underestimated. Three months after the tragedy, authorities determined that it was more powerful than they had calculated and that it reached category 3.
Initially, it was said that when Otto reached its maximum intensity, the afternoon of November 24th, 2016, the sustained winds would reach 175 kilometers per hour, so it was placed in category 2.
However, the US National Hurricane Center reported that during the last hours, the maximum speed reached was 185 kph, making it a category-3 phenomenon.
It is important to clarify that this magnitude of winds was obtained before and shortly after touching land in southern Nicaragua, that is, between 6 a.m. and noon,”
published the National Meteorological Institute (IMN).
Hurricane Otto took 10 human lives in Costa Rica: four in Bagaces, Guanacaste and six in Upala.
The last victim was an 18-month-old girl, who was found under the rubble and the disaster that caused an avalanche in the neighborhood of Los Angeles, in Bijagua de Upala.
There were more than 10,000 Costa Ricans directly affected and 1,610 damaged homes.