Play: '12 Angry Men'
Performed in English by the Little Theatre Group through Sun.: Fri. and Sat. 7:30 p.m.; Sun. 2:30 p.m. at Laurence Oliver Theater, Av. 2, Ca. 28, next to Sala Garbo, tickets at 8355-1623. See review at www.ticotimes.net/culture.htm.

Jacó Art Festival
Featuring local artists through Sun., Jacó, Puntarenas, information: 8867-9704.

U.S. Memorial Day commemoration
Sponsored by American Legion Post 16, lunch afterward at RostiPollos, 11 a.m., San Antonio de Escazú cemetery.

Film: “8 Femmes”
6 p.m., Alliance Française, in San José's Barrio Amón.

Malpais in concert
10 p.m., Jazz Café, San Pedro, http://jazzcafecostarica.com.

Sasha Campbell in concert
10 p.m., Jazz Café, Escazú, http://jazzcafecostarica.com.

Swing en 4 live
Jazz, 10 p.m., Latino Rock Café, Barrio La California.

'¿Bailamos o Qué?' dance show
By Merecumbé dance academy's professional dance company, May 30-31, 8 p.m.; June 1, 6 p.m., Teatro de la Danza, CENAC.

TT editor speaks to Demos Abroad
Tico Times Editor Brent Israelsen discusses freedom of press in Central America, 9:30 a.m., Aurola Holiday Inn, 3 rd floor, 2215-4254, cr.democratsabroad@yahoo.com.

Mime workshop
10 a.m., Spanish Cultural Center.

Xpotec technology fair
Sat. and Sun., Mall San Pedro.

Tamarindo scavenger hunt
Fundraiser for Tamarindo Lifeguard Program, 3 p.m., after party 5-7:30 p.m., Hotel Pasatiempo, Tamarindo, Guanacaste, tamarindoscavengerhunt@gmail.com.

Music, video, poetry
“A la ciudad por la palabra,” 4 p.m., Bach Music Academy, San Pedro, 100 m east, 15 m north of the church, info: 2224-1335.

Modern dance show
By Dance Academy Warehouse Dance Center, 4 and 7 p.m., National Auditorium, Children's Museum.

Film: “La Cage aux Folles”
6 p.m., Spanish Cultural Center.

Piano and cello concert
By Manuel Matarrita and Gerson Campos, 6 p.m., Etapa Básica de Música, UCR, Palmares, Alajuela.

Umbrarum's Hit & Roll Tour
Progressive rock, metal, 6 p.m., El Asutriano, San Marcos de Tarrazú; Sun. At 3 p.m., Salón El Trapiche, San Ignacio de Acosta, info: 2224-2146.

Son de Tikizia in concert
Salsa, 10 p.m., Jazz Café, San Pedro, http://jazzcafecostarica.com.

La Quinta Estación perform
8 p.m., Palacio de los Deportes, Heredia, info: 8835-0351.

Children's play: Caminito del Mar
2 p.m., Variedades Theater, Ca. 5, Av. Ctrl./1, info: 8335-8703, 8838-5547.

Nada in concert
Alt rock, 5 p.m., Jazz Café, Escazú.

La Excafandra in concert
Alternative, 10 p.m., Jazz Café, San Pedro.

At least 120 homes have been flooded, and bridges and roads across the country have been blocked or damaged by a rare tropical storm that hit the Pacific coast early yesterday.

“In Parrita, and other affected zones, we have 2,500 people affected directly,” said Presidency Minister Rodrigo Arias. “The situation is grave in San Isidro, Parrita and Guanacaste.”

The National Emergency Commission (CNE) announced a red alert, its highest, for the northwestern province of Guanacaste and the Central Pacific.

“We have machinery…in all of the affected towns,” said CNE president Daniel Gallardo. “The situation is under control. We're working 24 hours a day.”

As many as 60 accidents had been attributed to the tempest – called Tropical Storm “ Alma ” – by early Thursday morning, according to the Transportation Ministry (MOPT).

The Costa Rican Institute of Electricity (ICE) reports that 42,000 homes were left without electricity in the Nicoya Peninsula.

ICE also took safety precaution early yesterday, evacuating some 1,100 employees from the Pirrís hydroelectric power development project, in the Puntarenas province.

Winds were reported as high as 55 mph as of mid-day, according to the National Meteorology Institute (IMN). When winds reach 74 mph, a storm is considered a Category 1 hurricane.

Juan Santamaría International Airport west of San José and Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport in Liberia, Guanacaste, were open and running as normal.

Tobías Bolaños Airport in Pavas, between Juan Santamaría and San José, was closed Thursday, said Miguel Ortega, an airport manager.

Tropical storms usually form in the Caribbean sea.

“This is the first time a tropical storm has hit the Pacific coast in this location in 120 years,” said José Joaquín Aguero, an IMN meteorologist. “The last time this happened was around 1887.”

The rains, which began last weekend, look to continue, particularly along the Pacific as the storm moves toward Nicaragua.

Alma is the first tropical storm of the year. Hurricane season begins June 1. Government officials are bracing themselves for hard rains.

Rodrigo Arias, the president's brother, said the nation plans to ask for financial help to cover the costs of the storm. “There's never enough funds ready for this type of situation,” he said. “We're going to seek out private and foreign aide.”

Sixteen consecutive hours of intense rains unleashed by Tropical Storm “ Alma ” caused flooding in neighborhoods in Managua and across the Pacific coast yesterday as authorities canceled school and put the country on alert for hurricane conditions.

Nicaraguan media reported that two people died during the storm, one man in a car accident and another who was electrocuted by a fallen cable. Civil defense rescue workers evacuated several poor neighborhoods in Managua, as floodwaters filled the streets and entered homes.

Alma, the first named storm of the year, formed off the Pacific coast with winds around 100 kilometers per hour as it approached the northern Pacific coast of Nicaragua, near León. The storm, as of yesterday afternoon, had dumped some 50 millimeters of water on Managua and 70mm on the northern department of León in less than 24 hours.

Reports early in the day suggested that the storm would reach hurricane status, but as of yesterday afternoon it was still listed as a tropical storm.

Preliminary damage reports revealed flooding and structural damage to homes, mostly in marginalized and poor neighborhoods built along riverbeds and drainages, and to some electrical and water infrastructure. Authorities urged residents to stock up on drinking water in the event water services are not restored quickly.

Chilean diplomats said their nation's top police chief was killed yesterday in a helicopter crash in the Panamanian capital, news reports from Panama City said.

A Panamanian air force helicopter crashed into a shopping mall in the capital city yesterday. The number of people killed was still undetermined at the time of this report.

But Chile's Carabineros national police commander, Gen. José Alejandro Bernales, 59, was one of them, the Chilean Foreign Ministry said.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet suspended a tour of northern Chile and is rushing back to Santiago, where flags were lowered to half-staff, the Associated Press reported.

The Chileans were in Panama for an anti-terrorism conference, Panama City Mayor Juan Carlos Navarro told Reuters.

Authorities said the helicopter crashed into the shopping mall in Panama City's Calidonia neighborhood about 2 p.m. local time, EFE reported.

The area was packed with people at the time of the accident, EFE reported, making it difficult for firefighters to reach the building. Police later cleared the scene out of concern the chopper's fuel tanks might explode.