Brazil Extends Weather Alerts as Front Drives Weekend Storm Risk

Overview

• Inmet, Brazil’s national weather service, issued a Friday alert for storms in the South on Saturday and Sunday with rain of 20–30 mm per hour, up to 50 mm in a day, wind gusts of 40–60 km/h, and a chance of hail.
• Forecasts for Friday into the weekend point to afternoon downpours and lightning in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Espírito Santo as onshore flow feeds unstable air over the region.
• State civil defense agencies warned of strong gusts in the South reaching 70–90 km/h, which raises the risk of roof damage and falling trees as a surge of colder air spreads across Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina.
• Coastal conditions remain hazardous with waves up to 3 meters between São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro through Saturday, and Rio’s Tim Maia seafront cycleway stays closed after 2‑meter waves earlier in the week.
• Recent storms turned streets into fast floods and downed trees in Belo Horizonte and Juiz de Fora on Wednesday, and authorities urge residents to avoid flooded roads, stay clear of trees during gusts, and follow guidance from civil defense (199) and the fire service (193).