Brazil Opens Summer With Southeast Heat Wave as Inmet Flags Severe Storms in Rio Grande do Sul

Overview

• Inmet issued a danger alert for Rio Grande do Sul, forecasting up to 100 mm of rain in 24 hours, wind gusts near 100 km/h and hail with risks of flooding and power outages.
• Forecasters expect a Christmas‑week heat episode across the Southeast, with São Paulo near 35–36 °C and Rio de Janeiro potentially reaching 40 °C under mostly stable skies.
• Inmet’s seasonal outlook projects wetter‑than‑normal conditions in the South and much of the North and drier‑than‑normal conditions in the Southeast and Northeast, with temperatures generally above average.
• The forecast highlights large seasonal rainfall totals of roughly 700–1,100 mm over parts of the North and Center‑West and deficits up to about 100 mm in portions of the Southeast and Northeast.
• Meteorologists differ on La Niña’s persistence, with some expecting neutral Pacific conditions by late January and others noting possible continued influence on regional rainfall patterns.