Tropical Storm Amanda, the first named storm of the season in the Pacific, killed at least 14 people as it lashed El Salvador and Guatemala on Sunday amid flooding and power outages.

Ten people were killed in Storm Amanda
At least 10 people were killed when Tropical Storm Amanda struck El Salvador, unleashing heavy rain across the country including in the city of Ilopango. Photo: AFP / Marvin RECINOS

El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele declared a state of emergency for 15 days to cope with the effects of the storm, which weakened later in the day as it moved into Guatemala.

The fatalities were all recorded in El Salvador, interior minister Mario Duran said, warning that the death toll could rise.

Flash-floods unleashed in El Salvador
Flash-floods unleashed by Tropical Storm Amanda tossed cars around like toys in several San Salvador neighborhoods. Photo: AFP / Yuri CORTEZ

Amanda knocked down trees, triggered flash floods and landslides, caused power outages, and damaged about 200 homes, the head of the Civil Protection Service William Hernandez said.

Lanslides destroy home in El Salvador
Landslides and swollen rivers destroyed homes in working-class neighbourhoods of El Salvador's capital San Salvador. Photo: AFP / Yuri CORTEZ

One person is still missing, senior government official Carolina Recinos added.

San Salvador Mayor Ernesto Muyshondt said half of those killed died in the capital.

Flooding was also seen in El Salvador
Flooding was especially intense in the Santa Lucia neighborhood of Ilopango, El Salvador, where the roof of a vehicle is barely visible in the flood water. Photo: AFP / MARVIN RECINOS

"We are experiencing an unprecedented situation: one top-level emergency on top of another serious one," he said, referring to the coronavirus pandemic.

About 4,200 people sought refuge in government-run shelters after losing their homes or being forced to leave because they were in high-risk areas, Muyshondt added.

Volunteers carry a woman in a stretcher
Members of a volunteer stretcher corps prepare to carry out a woman who fainted in an area flooded by Tropical Storm Amanda in San Salvador's Modelo neighborhood. Photo: AFP / Yuri CORTEZ

In some flooded areas, soldiers worked alongside emergency personnel to rescue people.

"We lost everything, we've been left with nowhere to live," said Isidro Gomez, a resident of hard-hit southeastern San Salvador, after a nearby river overflowed and destroyed his home.

Another victim, Mariano Ramos, said that at dawn residents of his San Salvador neighborhood were slammed by an avalanche of mud and water. An elderly man died in the area, officials said.

El Salvador's Environment Ministry warned residents of the "high probability" of multiple landslides that could damage buildings and injure or kill people.

Nearly 90 percent of El Salvador, population 6.6 million, is considered vulnerable to flooding and landslides due to its geography.

In neighboring Guatemala, officials said roads had been blocked by at least five landslides and some flooding was reported, but no evacuations were underway.

Even though Amanda weakened to tropical depression status, Guatemalan officials warned that heavy rain would continue, with swollen rivers and possible "landslides affecting highways ... and flooding in coastal areas."

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