Tropical Cyclone Iota was the thirty-first and most powerful tropical cyclone of the 2020 Atlantic Hurricane Season, overtaking in intensity the recent Hurricane Eta. Iota developed from a powerful tropical wave moving across the eastern Caribbean Sea, which evolved into a tropical depression on 13 November. Six hours later, it strengthened into a tropical storm while it was over the central Caribbean Sea, north of Colombia. In the following days Tropical Storm Iota intensified, becoming a major hurricane on 16 November. On 17 November, it made landfall in Nicaragua as a category 4 hurricane. Hurricane-force winds and catastrophic storm surge were experienced near the point of landfall, approximately 15 miles (25 km) south of where category 4 Hurricane Eta made landfall on 3 November.