SAN JOSE, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- Hurricane Eta has forced at least 30,000 people in northeast Nicaragua to evacuate to shelters, said Guillermo Gonzalez, head of the country's National System for Prevention, Mitigation and Attention to Disasters (Sinapred), on Tuesday.

"Some 30,000 people are staying at shelters. That has been a very important element in protecting lives, and colleagues are accompanying the families so they are tranquil until the storm's winds weaken," Gonzalez said at a press conference.

"The good news is that so far we have no reports of injuries to people," he said.

Gonzalez said the damage registered is typical of a hurricane, such as uprooted trees, downed power lines and telephone poles, and damage to roofs due to strong winds.

Eta remains a category-4 hurricane on the 1-5 scale rating of intensity, said Marcio Baca, director of meteorology at Sinapred,

The hurricane battered Nicaragua's northeast coast with winds of 230 km per hour and over 171 mm of rain, but is expected to weaken as it moves inland towards the country's northern Mining Triangle, said Baca. Enditem

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