San Pedro Sula
San Pedro Sula
"Usula (Valley of Birds)" | |
|---|---|
 Flag  Seal | |
| Nickname(s): La Capital Industrial,Sap | |
| Country |  Honduras |
| Department | Cortés |
| Municipio (County) | San Pedro Sula |
| Foundation | 27 June 1536 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Armando Calidonio Alvarado (PNH) |
| Area | |
| • Urban | 840 km2 (320 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 83 m (272 ft) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • City | 1,073,824 [1] |
| • Density | 2,427.7/km2 (6,288/sq mi) |
| • Metro | 1,445,598 [2] |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central America) |
San Pedro Sula (Spanish pronunciation: [sam ˈpeðɾo ˈsula]) is a city in Honduras. The city is located in the northwest corner of the country, in the Valle de Sula (Sula Valley), about 100 kilometres (62 mi) south of Puerto Cortés on the Caribbean Sea. With an estimated population of one million in the main municipality, and 1,445,598 in its metro area (2010), it is the second largest city, after the capital Tegucigalpa. It is the capital of the Cortés Department.
Early years
The city grew slowly from about 800 residents in 1590, to almost 10,000 by the 1890s, but most of this population growth took place in the 19th century. It benefited initially from the growth of bananas for export in the 1870s and 1880s and formed a close relationship with U.S. based shipper and railroad entrepreneur Samuel Zemurray's Cuyamel Fruit Company, and the construction of the Interoceanic Railroad between 1869 and 1874 which connected the city to the coast at Puerto Cortés. Zemurray worked closely with local elites who invested in subsidiary enterprises and thus shaped the way politically for Cuyamel to establish itself and, along the way to pay very few taxes.[3]
Economy
In 2013, fifteen years after the effects of Hurricane Mitch, Honduras is one of the poorest countries in Latin America; around San Pedro Sula, banana production has not fully recovered, and "manufacturing has all but dried up."[4] The problems are exacerbated by organized crime, whose rules prevent residents from safely leaving gang-controlled neighborhoods such as Chamelecón for jobs in other parts of town.[4]
In 2000, then-Mayor Roberto Larios Silva said "San Pedro Sula is where the economic development of the country is concentrated via the city’s industrial, commercial and financial development." The then-manager of Hotel Copantl attributed its growth in business-related tourism ...[to] the maquila (apparel manufacturing) industry.[5]
As of 2011[update], San Pedro Sula generates two-thirds of the country's gross domestic product (GDP).[6]
The city is home to the biggest airport in Honduras, Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport. [citation needed]
Crime
San Pedro Sula is the most violent place in the world. In 2013, the city had 187 homicides per 100,000 residents.[7] This surpassed Ciudad Juarez, Mexico's rate of 148 killings per 100,000; Ciudad Juarez had previously topped the list for three consecutive years.[8] Both cities are major operational and strategic distribution points in the illegal drug trade, particularly to the United States, and have significant gang activity.[8][9][10] Meanwhile, arms trafficking has flooded the country with just under 70% illegal firearms; 83% of homicides in the city are by firearm compared.[11]
The city's growing role as a hub for cocaine trafficking has led to a surge in homicides in recent years.[12] For the second year in a row, San Pedro Sula had the highest murder rate in the world,[13][14] surpassing Mexico's Ciudad Juárez. San Pedro Sula topped the list of violent cities a second time with a rate of 169 intentional homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, setting an average of more than three homicides a day.[15] Authorities have launched Operation Lightning, saturating violence hotspots with police and soldiers.[15]
In 2013, various sources labeled San Pedro Sula the "murder capital of the world".[4][9][11][15][16]
According to the Los Angeles Times, "the homicide rate is stoked by the rivalry of the brutal street gangs, mostly descendants of gangs formed in Los Angeles and deported to Central America in the 1990s, including Mara Salvatrucha (MS) and the 18th Street gang. Their ranks are fed by the disastrous economy of Honduras, and emboldened more recently by alliances with Mexican drug traffickers moving cocaine through the country."[4]
Crime and economic stress have led to the migration of large numbers of unaccompanied minors to the U.S. border. The latest data from the CBP shows San Pedro Sula as the major source for Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) migrating from Honduras. UAC Map.
Geography
Climate
San Pedro Sula features a tropical savanna climate (Koppen Aw), with year-round relatively high temperatures and plentiful rainfall year round. San Pedro Sula has experienced hurricanes and tropical storms and is prone to them during the hurricane season usually when the storms form in the southern part of the Caribbean or Western Africa.
| Climate data for San Pedro Sula, Honduras (La Mesa International Airport) 1961–1990 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 33.9 (93.0) |
36.0 (96.8) |
38.9 (102.0) |
38.5 (101.3) |
38.6 (101.5) |
37.1 (98.8) |
35.3 (95.5) |
35.4 (95.7) |
36.0 (96.8) |
34.7 (94.5) |
34.1 (93.4) |
33.5 (92.3) |
38.9 (102.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 29.2 (84.6) |
30.4 (86.7) |
33.0 (91.4) |
34.0 (93.2) |
35.2 (95.4) |
34.3 (93.7) |
33.3 (91.9) |
33.4 (92.1) |
33.5 (92.3) |
31.6 (88.9) |
30.2 (86.4) |
29.2 (84.6) |
32.3 (90.1) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 23.5 (74.3) |
24.1 (75.4) |
25.8 (78.4) |
27.1 (80.8) |
28.1 (82.6) |
27.7 (81.9) |
27.1 (80.8) |
27.3 (81.1) |
27.2 (81.0) |
26.0 (78.8) |
24.7 (76.5) |
23.7 (74.7) |
26.0 (78.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 19.8 (67.6) |
20.0 (68.0) |
21.4 (70.5) |
22.5 (72.5) |
23.8 (74.8) |
23.8 (74.8) |
23.2 (73.8) |
23.3 (73.9) |
23.3 (73.9) |
22.5 (72.5) |
21.4 (70.5) |
20.4 (68.7) |
22.1 (71.8) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 15.8 (60.4) |
15.5 (59.9) |
17.1 (62.8) |
18.8 (65.8) |
20.2 (68.4) |
21.3 (70.3) |
20.9 (69.6) |
21.0 (69.8) |
20.9 (69.6) |
19.7 (67.5) |
17.8 (64.0) |
16.3 (61.3) |
15.5 (59.9) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 72.0 (2.83) |
59.6 (2.35) |
32.0 (1.26) |
32.1 (1.26) |
62.9 (2.48) |
142.4 (5.61) |
110.2 (4.34) |
105.7 (4.16) |
151.7 (5.97) |
147.8 (5.82) |
135.3 (5.33) |
121.7 (4.79) |
1,173.4 (46.20) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 6 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 89 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 84 | 81 | 77 | 75 | 74 | 76 | 79 | 79 | 79 | 81 | 83 | 85 | 80 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 186.0 | 178.0 | 238.7 | 222.0 | 220.1 | 201.0 | 210.8 | 198.4 | 183.0 | 198.4 | 156.0 | 155.0 | 2,347.4 |
| Mean daily sunshine hours | 6.0 | 6.3 | 7.7 | 7.4 | 7.1 | 6.7 | 6.8 | 6.4 | 6.1 | 6.4 | 5.2 | 5.0 | 6.4 |
| Source 1: NOAA[17] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Deutscher Wetterdienst (sun and humidity)[18] | |||||||||||||
Administrative divisions
San Pedro Sula, as most cities built under the Spanish colonial period, is divided in quadrants. Avenues in the city run from North to South and Streets run from East to West. First Street and First Avenue mark the "center of the city" and effectively divide it into four major quadrants NW, NE, SW and SE. [citation needed]
Sports
The Villa Olímpica is a multi-sporting complex that has facilities for most Olympic style games including soccer, boxing, swimming, baseball, cycling and multipurpose gymnasiums. [citation needed]
San Pedro Sula is the only city in the country to be home to two soccer stadiums. The Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano is located in the Villa Olímpica and is the largest in the country with a capacity of 42,000. The Estadio Francisco Morazán is located in the center of the city and holds 23,000 people. The stadiums are home to San Pedro Sula's most popular professional soccer teams Marathón and Real CD España. [citation needed]
Because of the stadiums, training facilities, and an almost religious supporting fan base, San Pedro Sula has become the home for the Honduras national football team.[19]
Tourism
It has a cathedral that was built in 1949.[20]
References
- ^ "Honduras: largest cities and towns and statistics of their population". World Gazeteer. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
- ^ "Honduras: metropolitan areas". World Gazeteer. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
- ^ Dario Euraque, Reinterperting the Banana Republic: Region and State in Honduras, 1870–1972 (Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press, 1996) pp. 25–27.
- ^ a b c d Wilkinson, Tracy. "In Honduras, rival gangs keep a death grip on San Pedro Sula". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
- ^ "San Pedro Sula becomes popular convention destination". Special International Report. The Washington Times Advertising Department. 24 March 2000. Archived from the original on 23 August 2001. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
- ^ "Honduras's indebted economy: The cost of a coup". The Economist. 399 (8737). The Economist Newspaper Limited: 71. 11–17 June 2011. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
The country of 8m is fighting back hard against its "unjust strangulation by the rest of the world", says Luis Larach, head of the chamber of commerce in San Pedro Sula, a northern export powerhouse that generates two-thirds of the country's GDP.
- ^ Sterbenz, Christina (31 December 2014). "San Pedro Sula, Honduras is the world's most violent place". Business Insider. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
- ^ a b Miroff, Nick (13 January 2012). "San Pedro Sula, Honduras is the world's most violent place". The Washington Post. Retrieved 30 April 2013.
- ^ a b "Honduran City is World Murder Capital; Juarez Drops for Second Year in a Row". Fox News Latino. 8 February 2013. Retrieved 30 April 2013.
- ^ Gardner, David (29 April 2013). "Inside the most violent city in the world: Horrific collection of photos show grim reality of life in San Pedro Sula, Honduras". Daily Mail. Retrieved 30 April 2013.
- ^ a b Cabrera, Jorge (5 April 2013). "Life and death in the murder capital". Reuters. Retrieved 30 April 2013.
- ^ Miroff, Nick (8 March 2012). "Grim toll as cocaine trade expands in Honduras". The Washington Post.
- ^ Miroff, Nick (13 January 2012). "San Pedro Sula, Honduras is the world's most violent place". The Washington Post.
- ^ Romo, Rafael (28 March 2013). "Inside San Pedro Sula, 'murder capital of the world". CNN.com.
- ^ a b c Romo, Rafael; Thompson, Nick (28 March 2013). "Inside San Pedro Sula, the 'murder capital' of the world". CNN. Retrieved 30 April 2013.
- ^ Kuruvilla, Carol (30 March 2013). "San Pedro Sula in northwest Honduras is the murder capital of the world: report". New York Daily News. Retrieved 30 April 2013.
- ^ "La Mesa Climate Normals 1961-1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
- ^ "Klimatafel von San Pedro Sula (La Mesa) , Bez.Cortés / Honduras" (PDF). Baseline climate means (1961-1990) from stations all over the world (in German). Deutscher Wetterdienst. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
- ^ "El año 2009 será duro" [The year 2009 will be hard]. Diario La Prensa (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 12 December 2008.
- ^ "Introducing San Pedro Sula". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
External links
San Pedro Sula travel guide from Wikivoyage- Honduras Weekly
- Universidad de San Pedro Sula
Capital: San Pedro Sula | ||
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