In El Salvador, the driving rain sparked a number of mudslides which led the government to declare a national "red alert," Interior Minister Rene Figueroa said. Roads were cut and flooding was widespread.

"Thirty-one people have regretfully died," Figueroa said, adding "we continue to urge people to follow our advisories in order to avoid further tragedies."

In San Marcos, southeast of San Salvador, five members of the same family including three children, died, officials said. Eighteen deaths were reported in the villages of Chaparral, Ateos, and Lourdes, west of the capital.

El Salvador was also on alert for a possible follow-up eruption of its largest volcano, which rumbled to life early Saturday for the first time in more than a century, killing two.