IHCAFE general manager Fernando Montes said key roads in coffee growing areas had been damaged by the severe downpour from powerful Mitch, which by Tuesday had left at least 19 people killed after flooding coastal areas of Honduras.

But Montes refused to estimate how much coffee could have been lost or otherwise damaged by Mitch, saying industry officials currently were hindered from visiting growing zones to assess the situation because of flood-destroyed roads.

"The road network and the roads which are in the coffee-growing zones have suffered due to the flooding and mudslides, and this makes access to and from the cultivated areas difficult," Montes told Reuters.

"At the moment we cannot talk about specific losses in figures...(but) if we don't take appropriate measures, wecould lose crops (in many plantations) and the losses could be incredible," he said.

Last Monday a spokesman for IHCAFE said no damage was expected to hit the crop, despite that Hurricane Mitch at that time was rated one of the most powerful Atlantic storms ever recorded. Mitch was Thursday downgraded to a tropical storm.

But Montes, speaking in lines with private industry officials, said he expected the 1998/99 coffee crop to have suffered at least some damage and IHCAFE officials were in the process of investigating the level of damage.

"We have asked for a report from the technical department about the damage to the crop caused by the rains as well as for the damage caused to the road infrastructure in the coffee zones," said Montes.

"If there has been significant damage to the infrastructure this could cause serious difficulties, then the shipment of the coffee would be delayed. This would be a major setback, because the repair of infrastructure like roads could take months."

A spokesman for theNational Coffee Fund (FNC) announced that the FNC had authorised the release of emergency funds to be able to proceed with repair work of destroyed roads in coffee zones immediately.

"We have telephoned the coffee growers that they immediately should contact the FNC to proceed as soon as possible with the repairs and reconstruction needed," said FNC's Magda Erazo.

IHCAFE has forecast the 1998/99 crop season will produce some 3.0 million quintals (46-kg bags), down almost 15 per cent from the record crop of 3.5 million quintals in the 1997/98 crop season.