{"id":83962,"date":"2026-08-22T11:11:49","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T14:11:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=83962"},"modified":"2026-08-23T13:41:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-23T16:41:12","slug":"third-strongest-windstorm-in-rio-de-janeiros-history-causes-panic-and-leaves-trail-of-destruction-say-voicesfromsocialmedia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=83962","title":{"rendered":"Third Strongest Windstorm in Rio de Janeiro’s History Causes Panic and Leaves Trail of Destruction, Say #VoicesFromSocialMedia"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Panoramic<\/a>
Panoramic photo shows a windstorm kicking up dust in Duque de Caxias. Photo: Reproduction<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas<\/strong><\/i><\/em><\/i><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

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This article is\u00a0<\/i>part of RioOnWatch\u2019s ongoing #VoicesFromSocialMedia<\/a>\u00a0series, which compiles perspectives posted on social media by favela residents and activists about events and societal themes that arise. It is also\u00a0part of a\u00a0series<\/a>\u00a0created in partnership with the\u00a0Behner Stiefel Center for Brazilian Studies<\/a>\u00a0at San Diego State University, to produce articles for the\u00a0Digital Brazil Project<\/a>\u00a0on environmental justice in the favelas for\u00a0RioOnWatch.<\/em><\/p>\n

Late afternoon on July 29, an unexpected windstorm hit the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Region<\/a>, bringing chaos, disruption, widespread damage and five deaths. The winds, which exceeded 100 km\/h<\/a>, were caused by a cold front and were early signs of the Super El Ni\u00f1o<\/a>, which is expected to intensify beginning in September<\/a>. Two of the five people killed<\/a> were on Rua Julio Otoni, in Santa Teresa<\/a>, in Rio’s Central Zone, when a tree and wall collapsed during the storm. Three others were electrocuted<\/a> in City of God, in the West Zone, while trying to help a relative who suffered an electric shock following a power surge caused by the windstorm.<\/p>\n

The extent of the damage led Rio de Janeiro’s Operations and Resilience Center (COR-Rio<\/a>) to declare Alert Level 2<\/a> for high-risk incidents. The strongest winds recorded by COR were in the North Zone<\/a>, at Gale\u00e3o Airport<\/a>, on Ilha do Governador<\/a>, reaching 105.5 km\/h. This was followed by the West Zone<\/a>, where winds reached 95.4 km\/h in Marambaia, 87.5 km\/h in Vila Militar<\/a> and 83.3 km\/h in Campo dos Afonsos.<\/p>\n

This extreme weather event ranked among the three strongest windstorms in Rio de Janeiro’s history<\/a>, behind winds of 115.5 km\/h recorded in Marambaia in 2019 and 110.2 km\/h in Copacabana<\/a> in 2019, respectively. Rio’s five highest wind-speed records have all occurred in the past seven years, revealing the alarming impact of climate change<\/a> on the city.<\/p>\n

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Um post compartilhado por Alerta Ilha 24h (@alertailha24h)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n