Extratropical Cyclone Forms Off Southern Coast, Strong Winds and Cold Pulse Expected

Overview

• An extratropical cyclone developing off the South Atlantic is forecast to produce gusts around 70 km/h on the Rio Grande do Sul and southern Santa Catarina coasts with agitated seas and a risk of coastal damage.
• A linked cold front will push a polar air mass into the Southern states, causing a sharp temperature drop and possible geada (frost) at higher elevations by Sunday.
• Inmet and other forecast agencies kept orange and yellow alerts active on Saturday for temporais in leste de Minas, Espírito Santo and northern Rio de Janeiro, warning of heavy rain, frequent lightning and gusty winds.
• Confirmed impacts from overnight and Friday storms include 306 lightning discharges in Ribeirão Preto with 49 strikes to ground, more than 80 mm in parts of Campo Grande that produced flooding and rescues, and multiple SMS/Cell Broadcast warnings from São Paulo's Defesa Civil.
• The sharp contrast between cold, windy conditions in the South and extreme heat with localized storms in the Northeast raises the risk of floods and landslides on already saturated soils and makes following local Defesa Civil instructions essential.