El Salvador on red alert due to El Nino-fuelled drought

El Salvador has entered a state of maximum alert due to a drought caused by the El Nino phenomenon, which has led to significant crop losses, according to authorities. The Civil Protection department has activated monitoring, surveillance, and aid efforts for affected communities across the entire national territory. El Nino, a weather pattern that raises surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, disrupts global winds and rainfall, leading to erratic weather conditions.

This year's El Nino is expected to be the most intense on record. Central America is currently experiencing severe drought, with Honduras placing 80% of its territory under alert and the Panama Canal reducing shipping traffic due to low water levels. In El Salvador, the scarcity of rain has decimated crops, prompting the agriculture ministry to provide food assistance to rural families lacking irrigation systems.

Several municipalities in El Salvador are situated within the Central American Dry Corridor, an arid region that extends into Honduras and Nicaragua and is highly susceptible to extreme weather events. All three countries recorded their highest monthly temperatures in June and July, heightening concerns of famine. In August alone, El Salvador has shattered 14 temperature records.

Further south, Peru declared a state of emergency in a third of its cities due to the effects of El Nino, predicting potential disruptions to food production from intense heat and rainfall.