Tropical Depression Twelve-E was a short-lived but deadly

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its locat ...

that dropped heavy rainfall across large portions of

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

in October 2011. It formed from a tropical disturbance roughly hundred miles south of

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, which fluctuated in organization for several days. By October 12, the

National Hurricane Center The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is the division of the United States' NOAA/National Weather Service responsible for tracking and predicting tropical weather systems between the IERS Reference Meridian, Prime Meridian and the 140th meridian ...

(NHC) deemed the associated low pressure-area well defined enough for it to be considered a tropical depression. After attaining peak wind speeds of 35 mph (55

km/h The kilometre per hour ( SI symbol: km/h; non-SI abbreviations: kph, kmph, km/hr) is a unit of speed, expressing the number of kilometres travelled in one hour. History Although the metre was formally defined in 1799, the term "kilometres per h ...

), the depression moved ashore between Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, and

Arriaga, Chiapas Arriaga Municipality is a municipality in the Mexican state of Chiapas, in southern Mexico. It covers an area of and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean and the neighbouring state of Oaxaca, as well as by the Chiapas municipalities of Cintalapa, ...

. It caused significant flooding and at least 30 fatalities in the region.

Meteorological history

Late on October 6, a low pressure area formed several hundred miles south of the Mexican coast. The disturbance quickly became more organized and two days later, the

remarked that the low would likely strengthen into a tropical depression. However, thunderstorm activity diminished greatly near the center of circulation, with what little shower activity there was left displaced to the east due to high

wind shear Wind shear (; also written windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical ...

. On October 12, the system was finally declared a tropical depression. Although the depression was initially forecast to briefly reach tropical storm status, this did not occur; instead, it remained a large

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...

-like system with the strongest winds well removed from the center. Shortly thereafter, the depression moved ashore between

Salina Cruz Salina Cruz is a major seaport on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of the List of states of Mexico, Mexican state of Oaxaca. It is the state's fourth-largest city and is the municipal seat of the Municipalities of Oaxaca, municipality of the sa ...

and Arriaga. Deep convection decreased after landfall and it dissipated within 24 hours after formation, early on October 13. But the storm's remnants continued to effect Central America, until late on October 13, when the remnants of Twelve-E were completely absorbed by a monsoon trough, directly to the remnant's east. The monsoon then developed into a strong upper-level low, and left Central America, and the storm began moving northeastward, while slowly strengthening.

Preparations and impact

Upon the formation of a

, a

tropical storm warning Tropical cyclone warnings and watches are alerts issued by national weather forecasting bodies to coastal areas threatened by the imminent approach of a tropical cyclone of tropical storm or hurricane intensity. They are notices to the local pop ...

was issued for areas from Barra De Tonala to the Guatemala-Mexico border. The depression dropped intense precipitation over large parts of

, with many areas still receiving heavy rains. In 24 hours, rainfall totals of more than 12 in (305 mm) were recorded in

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 ...

. Extensive

flooding A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant concern in agriculture, civi ...

and multiple

landslide Landslides, also known as landslips, rockslips or rockslides, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, mudflows, shallow or deep-seated slope failures and debris flows. Landslides ...

s caused heavy damage to roads, cutting them off to traffic. The profuse rainwater filled up rivers, causing them to overflow and exacerbating the flooding. It affected at least 81 of the country's 333 municipalities, and about 340 homes sustained damage. Authorities confirmed the deaths of at least twenty three people, and there were up to 30,000 storm victims in the country. According to preliminary reports, heavy downpours caused extensive infrastructural damage and the collapse of six bridges in

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

. Several telephone and electricity poles were downed, disrupting service to customers. Storm-related incidents caused the deaths of at least five people and affected around 3,000 others to some degree. Similar impact was reported in

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

, where over 15.7 in (400 mm) of rain fell in several locations. At the risk of flooding, The maximum precipitation was in Huizucar, with 1513 mm, this being the highest cumulative rainfall for the country, up to 4,300 residents sought shelter in schools, churches and public centers. At least 21 rivers burst their banks due to the flooding rains, while numerous mudslides inflicted damage to roads. Heavy damage also occurred to crop, particularly in coffee, beans, and

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

plantains. Overall, at least 24 people were killed when the storm damaged their residences. Elsewhere in

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

, landslides and flooding damaged property and roads, but there were no fatalities in the country. In

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...

at least 9 people were killed and thousands evacuated.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tropical Depression 12E (2011) 2011 Pacific hurricane season 12E 12E 12E 12E 12E 2011 in Mexico 2011 in Guatemala 2011 in El Salvador 2011 in Nicaragua 12E 12E 2011 in Honduras 2011 in Costa Rica 12-E

Meteorological history

Preparations and impact

See also

References