Tropical Storm Sara makes landfall in Belize after drenching Honduras; mudslides forecasted

SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras -- Tropical Storm Sara on Sunday made landfall in Belize, where forecasters expect heavy rain to cause life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides.

The storm moved inland in Belize after drenching the northern coast of Honduras, where it stalled since Friday, swelling rivers and trapping some people at home.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center's tropical storm warning as of Sunday included the Caribbean coast of Guatemala; the coast of Belize; and northward into the coast of Mexico's state of Quintana Roo, from Chetumal to Puerto Costa Maya.

Those areas, along with portions of El Salvador and western Nicaragua, could see up to 5 inches (13 cm), with localized totals reaching 15 inches (38 cm). The conditions "will result in areas of flash flooding, perhaps significant, along with the potential of mudslides," according to the Hurricane Center.

"A storm surge could raise water levels by as much as 1 to 3 feet above ground level near and to the north of where the center of Sara crosses the coast of Belize," the center said Sunday. "Near the coast, the surge will be accompanied by large and destructive waves."

Meanwhile, northern Honduras is not in the clear yet. The center expects Sara to drop up to 3 inches (8 cm) of rain there, but some areas could see totals hit 40 inches (1 meter), with "catastrophic and life-threatening flooding" still possible.