Brazil weather: orange storm alert for 6 states

Brazil's National Institute of Meteorology (INMET) has issued an orange alert, the "Danger" level, for storms in six states on Sunday, Nov. 8: Minas Gerais, Goiás, Espírito Santo, Mato Grosso do Sul, São Paulo and Mato Grosso. The alert runs from 8:45 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. Brasília time and covers 633 municipalities, according to the institute's alerts panel.

INMET says the storms could bring rain of 30 to 60 mm per hour or 50 to 100 mm per day, winds of 60 to 100 km/h and hail. The institute points to a risk of power outages, crop damage, fallen trees and flooding. Among state capitals, only Belo Horizonte falls inside the orange storm alert area.

What INMET recommends

For people inside the alert area, INMET advises against sheltering under trees during strong gusts, because of the risk of falling branches and lightning, and against parking vehicles near transmission towers and billboards. If possible, the institute recommends switching off electrical appliances and the main power switch. Further information is available from Brazil's civil defense agency, Defesa Civil (phone 199), and the fire department, Corpo de Bombeiros (193).

Other alerts in effect

A second orange alert, for coastal winds, covers the coasts of Bahia, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, also until 11:59 p.m. INMET says stronger winds could push sand dunes onto buildings along the shoreline. Vitória and Rio de Janeiro are among the capitals named.

At the yellow level ("Potential Danger"), INMET also has a storm alert in effect today for nine states and the Federal District: Goiás, Minas Gerais, São Paulo, Espírito Santo, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Bahia, Tocantins, Rio de Janeiro and the Federal District. A low-humidity alert covers eight states in the Northeast, where relative humidity is between 20% and 30%. For low humidity, the advice is to drink plenty of fluids, avoid physical exertion during the driest hours and stay out of the sun during the hottest ones. A yellow coastal-wind alert also covers the coasts of Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul, São Paulo and Paraná; Florianópolis is one of the capitals named.

Cold in the South and falling temperatures

INMET also issued a yellow alert for a temperature drop of 3 °C to 5 °C in Paraná, Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul, São Paulo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro. The health risk is rated as mild. For Curitiba, the institute forecasts a high of 14 °C and a low of 10 °C, with heavy cloud cover and a chance of isolated rain. In São Paulo, the forecast calls for a high of 21 °C and a low of 14 °C, with rain in the morning and isolated thundershowers in the afternoon. A model from MET Norway, Norway's national weather service, puts the city at about 16 °C around 10 a.m., an estimate rather than a measurement.

Forecast for the capitals

• Belo Horizonte: high of 28 °C and low of 19 °C; showers with thunder in the afternoon, according to INMET.
• Rio de Janeiro: high of 24 °C and low of 20 °C, with rain in the morning and isolated thunderstorms in the afternoon.
• Brasília: high of 28 °C and low of 20 °C, with showers and isolated thunderstorms.
• Porto Alegre: high of 24 °C and low of 15 °C, with heavy cloud cover and a chance of isolated rain in the morning.
• Teresina: high of 40 °C, the highest among the capitals in today's forecast, and a low of 26 °C. Piauí is among the states under the low-humidity alert; INMET's advice is to drink plenty of fluids and avoid exertion during the driest hours. Boa Vista has a forecast high of 37 °C.

Outlook for Monday (Nov. 9)

For Monday, Nov. 9, INMET has yellow storm alerts in effect for Goiás, Minas Gerais, Bahia, Espírito Santo, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Rio de Janeiro and the Federal District, and a temperature-drop alert for seven states. In the institute's forecast, Belo Horizonte has a high of 20 °C, with isolated showers in the morning and isolated thundershowers in the afternoon and at night. Curitiba is expected to reach a high of 17 °C and a low of 9 °C. A rainfall-accumulation alert is also in effect for Bahia from Tuesday (Nov. 10) through Thursday (Nov. 12). Alerts are updated throughout the day, and forecasts can change.

Sources

• INMET: weather alerts
• INMET: weather forecast
• MET Norway: forecast data
• RaisLife: Weather and climate

Text by Rai, RaisLife's virtual reporter (artificial intelligence), with automated editorial review. Data: raislife.com/clima.