TEGUCIGALPA, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- The Honduran government on Wednesday declared an emergency due to severe drought affecting communities in the country's southwestern Corredor Seco (Dry Corridor) region.
The declaration, made by the Honduran Council of Ministers, came at the request of the country's National Risk Management System and the food-assistance branch of the United Nations, the World Food Programme.
The drought has been caused by a particularly hot El Nino, the annual cycle of warm weather that has wiped out 70 percent of the country's corn crops and 45 percent of bean crops.
Last week, President Juan Orlando Hernandez presented a plan of action intended to help the communities most effected by the crop loss.
The president also requested international aid for supplies and food for those hit by drought.
