Relentless wind speeds reaching 90 kilometers per hour in the populous Central Valley of Costa Rica and the surrounding mountain ranges kept Red Cross workers, paramedics and public utilities crews on their toes this week. Two delivery trucks in the municipality of Santa Ana were nearly crushed by uprooted trees, people were injured by flying debris and several communities were without electrical power for quite a few hours.

According to Carlos Castro Gamboa of daily tabloid Diario Extra, a 70-year old Fountain Tree (Spathodea) in downtown Santa Ana could not withstand the strong wind gusts and fell on top of two delivery trucks. The driver of an electrical supply truck was in the cabin when the tree fell and wrecked the vehicle with the weight of its powerful trunk. The man was lucky to escape with minor injuries since the cabin was impacted by the smallest branches.

A Coca Cola delivery truck was completely crushed; as luck would have it, the driver and his two assistants were not int the vehicle at the time the tree came crashing down. Eyewitnesses reported that the tree caused quite a scene as it snapped power lines and caused electrical sparks to rain on the street. Transit police officers closed off the perimeter and cut the power to allow firefighters and utility crews to clear the area.

The Central Valley was not the only region of Costa Rica affected by the gusty conditions, which are expected to continue through the weekend.

In other parts of the country, Red Cross workers treated people struck by tree branches and other flying debris. Reports of cars struck by heavy branches came from Heredia, and dozens of neighborhoods beyond the valley were without power as utility crews raced from one place to the next. Some of the communities that lost power are located in La Fortuna, San Ramon, Grecia, Sarapiqui, Cartago, and Penas Blancas.