Death toll from rains, flooding in El Salvador rises to 91

The death toll in El Salvador from the rains and flooding provoked in the last hours by hurricane Ida rose on Sunday to 91, El Salvador's Interior Minister Humberto Centeno said.

The deaths occurred in the departments of Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, San Vicente and San Salvador, and 60 people were reported missing in San Vicente, Centento said in a press conference.

Centeno also said that on Sunday some 7,000 people were taken to 25 shelters, while other 182 were evacuated from the places that represent any risk.

Hurricane Ida provoked a low pressure system in the Pacific Ocean since Saturday, producing pouring rains, which could finish on Monday when Ida decreases, the Salvadorian National Service of Territorial Studies said.

The Salvadorian government declared "orange alert" in the five affected departments in the central zone of the country.

Verapaz municipality, 48km east to San Salvador, has reported at least 10 deaths and 300 destroyed houses.

According to Civil Protection director Jorge Melendes, Verapaz, San Vicente city and Guadalupe municipality have registered landslides and flooding.

Source: Xinhua