The center of the Category 1 storm is more than 100 miles north of Panama City but outer bands of rain are expected to bring 4 to 8 inches to Panama and southern Costa Rica through Wednesday.

Additional strengthening is expected, and Otto could become a Category 2 storm before making landfall near the Nicaragua-Costa Rica border on Thursday.

While the Caribbean is one of the few areas with warm enough water to support a hurricane this late in the season, a storm making landfall this far south is extremely rare

This portion of Central America is unaccustomed to hurricane landfalls. It also has steep terrain, which makes the area prone to flooding and landslides from a slow-moving storm like Otto.

Otto formed in the southern Caribbean early this week as the US National Hurricane Center closely monitored the area. The storm has steadily strengthened and on Tuesday afternoon became the seventh hurricane of the season in the Atlantic basin. Otto is developing later in the season than any Atlantic basin hurricane since Hurricane Epsilon in 2005. It is the latest hurricane to form in the Caribbean, supplanting Hurricane Martha of 1969 in the record book. Otto is expected to be the southernmost hurricane landfall since Irene hit Nicaragua in 1971. If it makes landfall in Nicaragua it will be the first hurricane to do so since Ida in 2009. And most impressively, if Otto makes landfall in Costa Rica, it will be that country's first hurricane landfall in recorded history (since 1851). Track the latest weather story and share your comments with CNN Weather on Facebook and Twitter. Hurricane season officially ends on November 30, and while the month of November can have named storms, the season is generally winding down. Impactful storms are infrequent occurrences, especially this late in November. </s> Hurricane Otto has strengthened to a category two storm as it approaches the sparsely populated Caribbean border between Nicaragua and Costa Rica as an unusually strong late-season event.

Heavy rains from the storm were blamed for three deaths in Panama, and Otto was forecast to make landfall in Nicaragua on Thursday, just north of the Costa Rican border.

Officials in Costa Rica ordered the evacuation of 4,000 people from its Caribbean coast and closed schools nationwide for the rest of the week. Heavy rain has already caused flooding in some areas and the Costa Rican president, Luis Guillermo Solís, announced that public employees would not have to work on Thursday or Friday.

The country’s National Meteorological Institute noted that a hurricane had never made landfall in Costa Rica since records began.

Nicaragua also closed schools and was evacuating more than 10,000 people from communities in the storm’s path. Heavy rains were expected to affect the whole country on Thursday and Friday, raising the possibility of flooding and landslides.

The US National Hurricane Center said the storm had regained hurricane strength late on Wednesday night after fluctuating between tropical storm and hurricane status earlier in the week. By Thursday morning, Otto’s maximum sustained winds had increased to nearly 105mph (165km/h) with additional strengthening possible before landfall.

Solís said Otto could damage the country’s important coffee and agriculture sectors.

Nicaragua also feared damage for impoverished farmers and to coffee crops that are almost ready to harvest. </s> MANAGUA, Nicaragua — Tropical Storm Otto headed toward the Pacific Ocean early Friday after dumping rain on Costa Rica and Nicaragua, where it made landfall as the southernmost hurricane on record to hit Central America.

Otto reached Nicaragua's Caribbean coast on Thursday as a dangerous Category 2 storm but it immediately began fading as it crossed land, becoming a tropical storm by nighttime. It was expected to emerge over the eastern Pacific early Friday.

Authorities in Nicaragua said the hurricane had damaged houses, but so far there were no reports of casualties. Earlier, heavy rains from the storm were blamed for three deaths in Panama.

Otto battered Nicaragua's Corn Islands with 3.5-meter waves and damaged houses but residents were all safe in refuges, said the archipelago's mayor, Cleveland Rolando Webster.

"There is a lot of rain, the sea is rough and the wind is strong. We have been in danger all night, getting cold and wet," said Alicia Lampson, 21, as she arrived at a shelter with a group of people from the village of Monkey Point, south of Bluefields, Nicaragua.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said the unusually strong late-season hurricane hit land in Nicaragua just north of the Costa Rican border. By late Thursday night, it was located about 20 miles (30 ) north of Liberia, Costa Rica.

The Nicaraguan government declared a state of emergency, and said evacuations would continue because of the continued risk of flooding.

In Bluefields — the nearest major town on the Nicaraguan coast — residents rode out the hurricane.

"In our house, we have packed up some things in plastic bags and we went out to buy some provisions, just in case," said resident Jean Hodgson.

Nicaragua closed schools and was evacuating more than 10,000 people from communities in the storm's path. Heavy rains were expected to affect the entire country, raising the possibility of flooding and landslides.

Officials in Costa Rica ordered the evacuation of 4,000 people from its Caribbean coast and called off school nationwide for the rest of the week.

Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis said Otto could damage the country's important coffee and agriculture sectors. Nicaragua also feared damage to coffee crops that are almost ready for harvest. </s> Hurricane season officially ends on November 30, and while the month of November can have named storms, the season is generally winding down. Impactful storms are infrequent occurrences, especially this late in November.

Otto formed in the southern Caribbean early this week as the National Hurricane Center closely monitored the area. The storm has steadily strengthened and on Tuesday afternoon became the 7th hurricane of the season in the Atlantic basin. Otto is developing later in the season than any Atlantic basin hurricane since Hurricane Epsilon in 2005.

Additional strengthening is expected, and Otto could become a category 2 storm before making landfall near the Nicaragua/Costa Rica border on Thursday. While the Caribbean is one of the few areas with warm enough water to support a hurricane this late in the season, a storm making landfall this far south is extremely rare.

Otto is expected to be the southernmost hurricane landfall since Irene hit Nicaragua in 1971. If it makes landfall in Nicaragua it will be the first hurricane to do so since Ida in 2009. And most impressively, if Otto makes landfall in Costa Rica, it will be that country's first hurricane landfall in recorded history (since 1851). Track the latest weather story and share your comments with CNN Weather on Facebook and Twitter. This portion of Central America is unaccustomed to hurricane landfalls. It also has steep terrain, which makes the area prone to flooding and landslides from a slow-moving storm. </s> SAN JOSE, Costa Rica – Tropical Storm Otto killed at least nine people in Costa Rica and then headed into the Pacific Ocean Friday after making landfall as the southernmost hurricane on record to hit Central America.

Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis announced that nine people had been killed in the area of Bagaces and Upala, a town south of the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border. Earlier, he said at least six people were missing in the nearby town of Bijagua.

Solis said as much water fell on the area in a few hours as normally falls in a month, and said some people had been trapped by rising waters.

The United States sent airplanes and neighboring Panama sent planes and helicopters to aid in the search and rescue efforts in the area, where rain-swollen rivers overflowed their banks.

Otto made landfall on Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast on Thursday as a dangerous Category 2 storm but it faded to tropical storm force before emerging over the eastern Pacific early Friday.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said that by Friday morning, the storm was centered about 245 miles south-southeast of San Salvador, and had maximum sustained winds of 60 mph. It was moving toward the west at 16 mph. It was projected to keep moving westward away from Central America, further into Pacific. </s> MANAGUA, Nicaragua – Hurricane Otto made landfall as a dangerous Category 2 hurricane on a sparsely populated stretch of Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast Thursday, becoming the southernmost hurricane on record to hit Central America.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said the unusually strong late-season hurricane hit land just north of the Costa Rican border near the town of San Juan de Nicaragua with winds of 110 mph.

The center said Otto’s winds later weakened to 100 mph as it moved inland near the border with Costa Rica.

The center called Otto dangerous in part because of the heavy rains and storm surge it carries, and forecasters said it was likely to cross over land and enter the Pacific.

Heavy rains from the storm have already been blamed for three deaths in Panama.

The center said Otto will continue to move across southern Nicaragua and northern Costa Rica and is expected to weaken to a tropical storm overnight.

The Nicaraguan government declared a state of emergency, and said evacuations would continue because of the continued risk of flooding.

In Bluefields, Nicaragua – the nearest major town on the Nicaraguan coast – residents rode out the hurricane.

“In our house, we have packed up some things in plastic bags and we went out to buy some provisions, just in case,” said Bluefields resident Jean Hodgson. “But if we had to leave our house, we don’t know where we could take refuge.” The area is low-lying and easily flooded.

Further south – and closer to where Otto hit – residents in the smaller town of Punta Gorda said they were planning to ride out the hurricane.

“There is fear, because these kinds of things are scary, but we are praying and doing what the authorities have told us to do,” said Punta Gorda resident Sara Pantin.

Nicaragua closed schools and was evacuating more than 10,000 people from communities in the storm’s path. Heavy rains were expected to affect the entire country, raising the possibility of flooding and landslides.

Officials in Costa Rica ordered the evacuation of 4,000 people from its Caribbean coast and called off school nationwide for the rest of the week. Heavy rain was already causing flooding in some areas and the president announced that public employees would not have to work Thursday or Friday.

By Thursday, 16 government shelters in Costa Rica held about 1,335 evacuees. People often take shelter with relatives during such evacuations.

The storm caused heavy rains in Panama as it moved roughly parallel to that nation’s northern coast, killing three people there.

Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis said Otto could damage the country’s important coffee and agriculture sectors.

Nicaragua also feared damage for impoverished farmers and to coffee crops that are almost ready for harvest.

Otto was moving west at 12 mph (19 kph) and could re-emerge over the Pacific as a tropical storm before weakening to a tropical depression. </s> MANAGUA, Nicaragua — Hurricane Otto strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane as it churned toward the sparsely populated Caribbean coast border of Nicaragua and Costa Rica Thursday as an unusually strong late-season storm.

Heavy rains from the storm were blamed for three deaths in Panama. Otto was forecast to make landfall Thursday in Nicaragua, just north of the Costa Rican border.

In Bluefields, Nicaragua — the nearest town of any size on the coast — residents prepared to ride out the hurricane.

“In our house, we have packed up some things in plastic bags and we went out to buy some provisions, just in case,” said Bluefields resident Jean Hodgson. “But if we had to leave our house, we don’t know where we could take refuge.” The area is low-lying and easily flooded.

Nicaragua closed schools and was evacuating more than 10,000 people from communities in the storm’s path. Heavy rains were expected to affect the entire country, raising the possibility of flooding and landslides.

Officials in Costa Rica ordered the evacuation of 4,000 people from its Caribbean coast and called off school nationwide for the rest of the week. Heavy rain was already causing flooding in some areas and the president announced that public employees would not have to work Thursday or Friday.

No hurricane has made a direct landfall in Costa Rica since reliable record-keeping began in 1851.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said the storm regained hurricane strength late Wednesday night after fluctuating between tropical storm and hurricane status earlier this week. By Thursday morning, Otto’s maximum sustained winds had increased to near 105 mph with additional strengthening possible before landfall.

The storm caused heavy rains in Panama as it moved roughly parallel to that nation’s northern coast, killing three people there.

Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis said Otto could damage the country’s important coffee and agriculture sectors.

Nicaragua also feared damage for impoverished farmers and to coffee crops that are almost ready for harvest.

Otto “could seriously jeopardize food security for small-holder farmers who rely on maize, beans, cocoa, honey, coffee and livestock for their livelihoods,” said Jennifer Zapata, a regional director for Heifer International, a U.S.-based anti-poverty group.

Thursday morning, Otto was moving west near 8 mph and was centered about 70 miles north of Limon, Costa Rica, the hurricane center said. </s> A woman walks in front of houses destroyed by a landslip after Hurricane Otto hit in Guayabo de Bagaces in Costa Rica on November 25, 2016. The devastation killed 9 people in the Central American country.

After the tropical storm made landfall as the southern most hurricane to Central America.

Tropical Storm Otto killed at least nine people in Costa Rica and then headed into the Pacific Ocean after making landfall as the southernmost hurricane on record to hit Central America.

Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis announced that nine people had been killed in the area of Bagaces and Upala, a town south of the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border. Earlier, he said at least six people were missing in the nearby town of Bijagua.

Mr. Solis said as much water fell on the area in a few hours as normally falls in a month, and said some people had been trapped by rising waters.

The United States sent airplanes and neighbouring Panama sent planes and helicopters to aid in the search and rescue efforts in the area, where rain-swollen rivers overflowed their banks.

Otto made landfall on Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast on Thursday as a dangerous Category 2 storm but it faded to tropical storm force before emerging over the eastern Pacific early on Friday.

Authorities in Nicaragua said the hurricane had damaged houses, but so far there were no reports of casualties.

Earlier, heavy rains from the storm were blamed for three deaths in Panama.

Otto battered Nicaragua’s Corn Islands with 3.5-meter (10-foot) waves and damaged houses, but residents were all safe in refuges, said the archipelago’s mayor, Cleveland Rolando Webster.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said that by Friday morning, the storm was centred about 395 kilometres south-southeast of El Salvador’s capital, San Salvador, and had maximum sustained winds of 95 kph.

It was moving toward the west at 26 kph. It was projected to keep moving westward away from Central America, further into Pacific.

The Nicaraguan government earlier declared a state of emergency, but later reported there were no deaths directly related to the hurricane. About 400 homes in Nicaragua were damaged or destroyed.

Mr. Solis said Otto could damage the country’s important coffee and agriculture sectors. Nicaragua also feared damage to coffee crops that are almost ready for harvest. </s> Storm Otto became a hurricane off the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua on Tuesday, the U.S.-based National Hurricane Center said, with additional strengthening expected over the next couple of days.

Otto was 305 miles (491 km) east-southeast of Bluefields, Nicaragua, at around 1600 EST, the NHC said.

The storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 75 miles per hour (121 km/h) and is expected to approach the coasts of Costa Rica and Nicaragua on Thursday, the Miami-based agency said.
Hurricane Otto makes landfall in Nicaragua, becoming the southernmost hurricane on record to hit Central America.