El Salvador's Apparel Factories Spared in Hurricane Ida Damage
The apparel industry in El Salvador escaped major damage from heavy rains that followed in the wake of Hurricane Ida, which swept across the Central American region earlier.
A torrential downpour on Nov. 8 resulted in rivers of mud tumbling down steep hillsides and volcanoes, killing more than 137 people in a region primarily east of the country’s capital, San Salvador.
The bulk of El Salvador’s apparel factories, which make an array of clothing for major U.S. labels and retailers, are located west of San Salvador.
“We had a lot of rain over the weekend,” said Salvador Llort, executive vice president of Confecciones del Valle, which has three factories and 1,900 workers in Lourdes, about 20 minutes west of San Salvador. “Thank God it has not affected us production- wise.”
Production was running normally, Llort said on Nov. 9, and shipping to the United States was also running on schedule.
Not far away is Partex Apparel International in San Juan Optico. Juan Zighelboim, Partex’s chief executive, said his factory, which makes primarily activewear for labels such as Adidas and various retailers, was unaffected. “Luckily, none of our associates had any damage,” he said, noting that none of his 700 workers’ homes were flooded after the storm hit. “It is a beautiful day. You wouldn’t know that this had happened. It rained for four days in a row.”
Eric Joo, managing director for CS America Inc., whose factory in El Salvador does yarn extrusion and yarn texturing for high-performance fabrics, said business was normal.
But in the eastern region of the country, where many of the country’s coffee plantations are located, it was a different story. A torrent of rain and mud from the Chichontepec volcano hit the town of Verapaz, wrecking 300 homes and killing scores of people. A search was on for missing residents. On Nov. 8, President Mauricio Fumes declared a national emergency. —Deborah Belgum
