Ida's lashing rains and 75-mile-per-hour (120 kilometer-per-hour) winds churned the Caribbean waters about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of Bluefields and 85 miles (135 km) south of Puerto Cabezas at 1200 GMT, the NHC said.

The storm is expected to drench eastern Nicaragua and eastern Honduras with 15 to 20 inches (38-50 centimeters) of rain, with up of 25 inches (63 centimeters) possible, the Miami-based center said.

"These rains could produce life-threatening flash floods and mud slides," it warned.

A hurricane watch was in effect along Nicaragua's eastern seaboard from north of Puerto Cabezas to the border with Honduras, the center said. A tropical storm warning was in effect for the border region from Honduras to Costa Rica.

Ida first formed into a tropical depression on Tuesday off Costa Rica's port city of Limon.

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