The North of Costa Rica, specially the areas of Upala and Los Chiles in Alajuela and several areas in Guanacaste, were severely affected by the heavy rains and winds of Hurricane Otto, which made landfall in Nicaragua yesterday and moved through Costa Rica as a category 1 hurricane. So far 3 people have been confirmed dead and there are several people missing have been reported.

Although these areas were part of the red alert zones and the government had ordered their evacuation since Nov. 22, many neighbors refused to leave and others claimed the shelters were insufficient and not properly equipped.

The Tourism Institute of Costa Rica has requested tourism companies in the areas of the Caribbean and Guanacaste to suspend their tours and activities in the areas that have been affected and remain in red alert still today to warrant the security of visitors.

Some areas in Upala in Alajuela and Bagaces in Guanacaste are still isolated, flooded streets and damages in infrastructure are part of the damages reported. In six hours, Upala received the amount of rain it would normally get in a month an a half during the rainy season.

Hurricane Otto left the country into the Pacific early Friday morning and is no longer having an effect over the country, however the Costa Rican Meteorological Institute has alerted of weather instability and rain is still expected today in most parts of the country.

Airports are working normally at this time.