Please refer to the attached Infographic. KEY FIGURES 36K people left without power after severe weather in Chile 3. 6K people remain in shelters after a 7. 5 earthquake in Panama 4K homes damaged following 7. 5 earthquake in Panama MEXICO: HURRICANES A new storm, Trudy, is forecast to strengthen into a Category 4 hurricane before passing off the coasts of Michoacán and Colima this weekend. Like Hurricanes Polo, Rachel and Simon before it, Trudy is tracking north-west along the coast. It would be the eighth major hurricane of a record eastern Pacific season, double the usual number, as record-warm waters linked to El Niño fuel storm activity. Hurricane Simon, which lingered off Jalisco, never made landfall, but its rain and storm surge damaged 71 homes and 35 businesses in Colima. It weakened to a tropical storm on 15 October and is forecast to drift towards Baja California Sur. Further north, the remnants of Rachel triggered floods that killed at least five people in Ensenada, Baja California, raising the death toll from the recent storms to six. As of 13 October, five more people remained missing in Baja California. CHILE: FLOODING A new frontal system swept across central Chile from 11 October, the 15th weather event linked to El Niño this year, according to the Government. The Mapocho River, which flows through the capital, Santiago, overflowed again, forcing a preventive evacuation of the Ribera del Río informal settlement in Talagante, south-west of the city. A weak tornado also damaged Santiago’s Alameda bus terminal in Estación Central. On 13 October, the storm left about 36, 000 customers without power, 23, 000 of them in the Santiago Metropolitan Region. As of 14 October, the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service reported 26 damaged homes between the Coquimbo and Maule regions, with 60 more in Rancagua awaiting assessment after flooding. The storm also forced 116 schools to suspend classes and put four health facilities in the capital region out of service. PANAMA: EARTHQUAKE Authorities have reported the first death following the 7. 5 magnitude earthquake that struck Panama on 9 October, a person who was hospitalised with injuries. According to the National Civil Protection System (SINAPROC), the quake affected 13, 623 people. A week later, at least 3, 696 people remain in shelters, primarily in Veraguas, where 2, 569 people are in shelters in Mariato, and Los Santos, with 644 people in 13 shelters. Many others remain with relatives or are sleeping outdoors for fear of aftershocks. Authorities report damage to more than 4, 000 homes, 879 completely destroyed, 619 educational centres and 67 health centres. Rain, swollen rivers and landslides are hampering access to cut-off communities, where gaps in water and sanitation raise the risk of diarrhoeal disease. UNICEF estimates that nearly 38, 000 people may need assistance, including about 8, 300 children. HAITI: DROUGHT & FOOD INSECURITY Below-average rainfall over the past 45 days has degraded vegetation across southern Haiti, as an El Niño-related dry spell threatens the coming harvest. The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) reports the worst deterioration around Jacmel and Les Cayes and in parts of Ouest and Grand’Anse, where high temperatures are drying out soils and reducing water for irrigation. While northern Haiti received 25 to 50 per cent more rain than average from late August to early October, the south, especially Sud-Est, stayed dry, and forecasters expect below-average rainfall there to continue. FEWS NET warns that the dry conditions will likely reduce end-of-season yields, adding to the strain in a country where an estimated 3 – 3. 5 million people already require food assistance.
Panama: Latin America & The Caribbean Weekly Situation Update as of 16 October 2026
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