Associated Press
Saturday, May 21, 2005; A14

SAN SALVADOR, May 20 -- Hurricane Adrian failed to live up to its billing Friday, quickly fizzling out over Honduras after striking an unprecedented blow to the Salvadoran coast.

Tens of thousands of people were evacuated before the hurricane, the first of the eastern Pacific season, but Adrian caused relatively little damage and no reported deaths after hitting west of El Salvador's capital overnight with maximum sustained winds of almost 75 mph.

By midday, the rapidly moving storm had largely broken up over neighboring Honduras, leaving scattered showers, some flooding, blocked roads and the loss of a few shacks. It was downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm and later to a tropical depression.

"There were no deaths or damage to mourn," said President Ricardo Maduro of Honduras. "So we are fortunate."

President Tony Saca of El Salvador told local television that officials were evaluating the damage but that activities were returning to normal after the concern caused by the first hurricane on record to directly hit El Salvador.

Officials in Guatemala and Nicaragua also reported some small-scale evacuations and flooding.