Hurricane Julia (2022)
Hurricane Julia was a deadly tropical cyclone that caused significant impacts in Central America as a Category 1 hurricane in October 2022. The tenth named storm and fifth hurricane of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, Julia formed from a tropical wave over the southern Caribbean Sea on October 7, just off the coast of South America. Only one storm on record, Tropical Storm Bret in 1993, has tracked further south over South America.
Hurricane Julia at peak intensity while making landfall in Nicaragua on October 9 | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | October 7, 2022 |
| Dissipated | October 10, 2022 |
| Category 1 hurricane | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Highest winds | 85 mph (140 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 982 mbar (hPa); 29.00 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 35 direct, 54 indirect (89 total) |
| Damage | >$406 million (2022 USD) |
| Areas affected | Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, ABC islands, Colombia, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Panama, Mexico |
| IBTrACS / | |
Part of the 2022 Atlantic and Pacific hurricane seasons | |
On October 9, it became a hurricane and proceeded to make landfall in Nicaragua. It emerged into the Pacific Ocean as a tropical storm late that same day, becoming the eighteenth tropical storm of the 2022 Pacific hurricane season, and the second storm of the season to survive the crossover between the Atlantic–Pacific basin, after Bonnie in July. The storm then briefly moved along the coast of El Salvador, before moving inland and degenerating into an open trough over Guatemala on October 10.
Julia brought heavy rains to much of Central America, causing life-threatening flash floods and deadly mudslides, exacerbating an already devastating rainy season. Floods, storm surge and the total or partial collapse of houses forced the evacuation of thousands of people. Its precursor disturbance triggered similar impacts in northern Venezuela. Altogether, Julia was responsible for 35 direct deaths, 54 indirect deaths, and at least US $406 million in damage.