Hurricanes and the Making of Caribbean History
The 1899 San Ciriaco hurricane1899 San Ciriaco hurricane hit Puerto Rico, whose economy relied on coffee. The crop had already been facing problems with a decrease in prices and competing countries, but the hurricane wiped out any chance of rebounding from the losses of the previous years. The winds stripped the berries from the trees and the coffee exports of 1899 were only 10 percent of the average export. The losses amounted to 12 million dollars in revenue from 1899 to 1901. This left a dismal outlook on the future for farmers. Sugar was also affected by the storm, although the results were not as drastic. Only a third of the sugar crop could be harvested in 1899, but the soil was reinvigorated. The storm only affected the older haciendas, which would have been retired soon regardless of the hurricane. This allowed for newer technologies to be introduced to the sugar system and U.S. involvement increased. Overall, San Ciriaco helped and hurt the agriculture of Puerto Rico.
Hurricane Ida
Shortly after being designated as Tropical Storm Ida on November 4, the government of Nicaragua issued a tropical storm warning for the entire coastline of Nicaragua, and the government of Columbia also issued a warning for the nearby islands of San Andrés and Providencia. Later that day, a hurricane watch was declared for areas between Bluefields and the Nicaragua–Honduras border. As Ida moved closer to land, the tropical storm warning for San Andrés and Providencia was discontinued. Several hours later, the tropical storm warning and hurricane watch were modified to cover areas south of the Nicaragua–Honduras border to Puerto Cabezas and a hurricane warning was issued for areas south of Puerto Cabezas to Bluefields. After Ida made landfall in Nicaragua, all hurricane advisories were discontinued and replaced by a tropical storm warning. Shortly thereafter, a tropical storm watch was declared for areas along the Honduran coastline between Limón and the Nicaragua–Honduras border. However, all watches and warnings were discontinued once Ida weakened to a tropical depression on November 6.