On 2 November, Tropical Storm Eta rapidly intensified, becoming a major hurricane, and on 3 November it made landfall in Nicaragua as a category 4 Hurricane. Hurricane-force winds and catastrophic storm surge were experienced near the landfall point. While moving across Nicaragua, Eta rapidly lost intensity, being downgraded to a tropical storm on 4 November and to a tropical depression on 5 November, when it left the country heading for Honduras. During this period, tropical-storm-force winds extended over a large part of Nicaragua.