Latin America & The Caribbean Weekly Situation Update as of 3 October 2025

KEY FIGURES

• 18K people evacuated in eastern Cuba due to Hurricane Imelda
• 5.7M people face acute food insecurity across Haiti
• 1.5K people confined due to rising violence in La Guajira, Colombia

ATLANTIC: HURRICANE SEASON

Between 27 September and 3 October, Hurricane Imelda tracked from the Caribbean into the western Atlantic, bringing flooding and landslides to eastern Cuba, where more than 18,000 people were evacuated and at least two fatalities reported. The storm crossed the northern Bahamas as a tropical storm on 29 September and brushed Bermuda on 2 October as a Category 2 hurricane, prompting widespread closures but limited lasting impacts. Imelda has since weakened over the open Atlantic. The US National Hurricane Center is now tracking multiple disturbances in the Atlantic: a weak area of low pressure near the central Bahamas with low chance of formation (10 per cent through 7 days) and another tropical wave in the Central Tropical Atlantic which could develop into a tropical depression near the Lesser Antilles in the next 7 days (40 per cent).

COLOMBIA: CONFINEMENT

Territorial disputes and combatant killings between two non-state armed groups (NSAGS) for nearly a month has left approximately 1,500 people from rural areas in Dibulla, La Guajira, confined. School activities were suspended for two weeks. Although classes resumed, persistent fears, irregular attendance, and school dropouts have increased the risk of recruitment, use and exploitation of children and adolescents. Communities cannot access subsistence crops or engage in fishing, both main sources of livelihood, and face difficulties accessing healthcare services due to mobility restrictions. Undeclared individual displacements make it difficult to assess the full scale of the emergency and limit humanitarian response. NSAGs have resorted to threats against social leaders and human rights defenders, as well as intimidation tactics and exemplary punishments to instill fear and reinforce control over the population.

PACIFIC: HURRICANE SEASON

In the Eastern Pacific, Tropical Storm Octave formed on 30 September well southwest of Baja California. The storm is forecast to strengthen into a hurricane over the coming days but is expected to remain over open waters without affecting land. At the same time, Mexican authorities are monitoring a disturbance off the southwestern Pacific coast with a 90 per cent probability of developing into Tropical Storm Priscilla within the next week. If confirmed, Priscilla would be the 16th named storm of what has been a highly active Pacific season. Federal and state civil protection systems remain on alert, maintaining prevention and response protocols amid consecutive storm impacts along the Pacific coast in recent weeks.

HAITI: FOOD INSECURITY

Rising violence in Haiti’s capital is restricting humanitarian access and pushing families deeper into hunger, warns the World Food Programme. Acute food insecurity remains particularly severe in the neighborhoods of Port-au-Prince affected by armed groups and in the Ouest, Nord-Ouest, and Grand’Anse departments, driven by crop losses, reduced income opportunities, and high staple food prices. Poor households and internally displaced people are especially vulnerable, facing precarious living conditions, overcrowding, and limited access to basic services. With upcoming fall and winter harvests forecast to be below average, along with ongoing violence and disruptions to markets, food insecurity could intensify in the coming months. Simultaneously, funding shortfalls have forced WFP to suspend hot meals and slash food rations in half. With 5.7 million people facing acute food insecurity, WFP is appealing for $139 million to reach the country’s most vulnerable families over the next 12 months.