Tropical storm Alex, the first major storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, has left at least 10 people dead in Central America, local media reported Monday.

Hundreds of people had been evacuated from low-lying areas in El Salvador, as Alex entered the Gulf of Mexico Monday.

Six people were killed and their bodies were found on the swollen San Lucas river, a Nicaraguan local official said.

In eastern El Salvador along the Pacific coast, two people were drowned, and more than 500 people were evacuated.

In western Guatemala, two farmers were buried by a rain-triggered landslide while working on a road improvement project, the national emergency agency Conred reported.

According to the U.S. National Hurricane Center, Alex was still expected to strengthen into the first hurricane of the Atlantic season on Tuesday.

This year's hurricane season has been unusually active. The Pacific Hurricane Agatha, which appeared before the June 1 official start of the season, killed 156 people in Guatemala.