The city of Retalhuleu () is situated in south-western
Guatemala
Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
. It is the departmental seat of
Retalhuleu Department as well as the municipal seat of Retalhuleu Municipality.
Retalhuleu stands at about 240 metres above sea level. The city has a population of 90,505 (2018 census). Locally it is nicknamed "Reu."
History
The city played a role in the
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion (, sometimes called or after the Playa Girón) was a failed military landing operation on the southwestern coast of Cuba in April 1961 by the United States of America and the Cuban Democratic Revolutionary Front ...
. For a number of recruits, infantry training was carried out at a CIA-run base code-named ''JMTrax''. The base was on the Pacific coast of Guatemala between
Quetzaltenango
Quetzaltenango (, also known by its Maya name Xelajú or Xela ) is a municipality and namesake department in western Guatemala. The city is located in a mountain valley at an elevation of above sea level at its lowest part. It may reach above ...
and Retalhuleu, in the Helvetia coffee plantation.
In summer 1960, an airfield (code-named ''JMadd'', aka ''Rayo Base'') was constructed near Retalhuleu, Guatemala.
In November 1960, the Retalhuleu recruits also took part in quelling an officers' rebellion in Guatemala, in addition to the intervention of the
U.S. Navy.
On August 7 and 8, 2021, Retalhuleu was severely affected by rain, which lasted for 36 hours and caused landslides, floods and other damages to Retalhuleu and other Guatemalan cities.
(in Spanish)
Sports
The local
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
club is
Deportivo Reu which was founded in 2013 after
Juventud Retalteca became defunct. Deportivo Reu play their local games at the
Estadio Dr. Óscar Monterroso Izaguirre in the
Primera División de Ascenso The Primera División de Ascenso is the second highest level of football in Guatemala. Formerly, it was known as ''Liga Mayor "B"''. It is sanctioned by the National Football Federation of Guatemala
The National Football Federation of Guatemala ( ...
.
Climate
Retalhuleu has a
tropical monsoon climate
An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate subtype that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ' ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: ''Am'') with a very rainy
wet season
The wet season (sometimes called the rainy season or monsoon season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Generally, the season lasts at least one month. The term ''green season'' is also sometimes used a ...
from April to November, and a
dry season
The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The t ...
from December to March.
Landmarks
Map of Retalhuleu
References
External links
Government of Retalhuleu
*
Municipalities of the Retalhuleu Department
{{Guatemala-geo-stub