Brazil faces El Nino climate risks

A Brazilian climatologist warned that climate risks in southeastern Brazil, including the Sao Paulo state, will further escalate as the Southern Hemisphere enters spring, following an abnormal September in the country’s largest city marked by alternating heavy rains and high temperatures driven by a strong El Nino phenomenon and local cold fronts.

Winters in Sao Paulo are typically relatively dry, but the arrival of a strong El Nino has changed that this year. According to the city’s climate emergency management center, cumulative rainfall during this year’s winter, from June 20 to September 22, reached 417.1 millimeters, a 219.6-percent surge from the historical average of 130.5 millimeters.

Meanwhile, cumulative precipitation from the beginning of September up to the 22nd day of the month hit 294.3 millimeters, marking the highest level on record for the same period.