Greater Sao Paulo Floods: October Rain 14% Above Norm

BRAZIL · WEATHER

Greater Sao Paulo floods have eased for now: at 3:21 a.m. local time on Wednesday 21 October the city’s emergency weather center (CGE) reported no rain on its radar, and its flood map showed no flood points for the day. October has still brought 127.2 millimeters (5.0 inches) of rain to the city through 20 October, which is 13.6% above the 112 millimeters (4.4 inches) of a normal October.

For US readers, São Paulo is South America’s main business hub, and this month’s storms canceled flights at Congonhas airport and shut a central road tunnel. The CGE expects only isolated showers on the afternoon of Thursday 22 October, after a cool, dry start to the week.

Our Brazil news hub tracks the story, and our report on the São Paulo storm that killed one and flooded a tunnel has the first hours of 14 October. The numbers below come from the city’s own CGE bulletins and the state government.

How Much Rain Has Fallen in October

The CGE’s city average stood at 70.3 millimeters on the evening of 13 October, reached 81.1 millimeters after the storm of 14 October and hit 111.3 millimeters on the evening of 16 October. It was 127.0 millimeters on 17 October and has barely moved since, at 127.2 millimeters in the 20 October bulletins.

Nearly half of the month’s rain, 56.7 millimeters by our subtraction of the CGE totals, fell between the evening of 13 October and 17 October, in storms on 14 and 16 October. Those are city averages, so single stations and streams saw far more.

What Happened on 14 October

The CGE put every zone of the city on flood watch at 15:25 local time, and kept it until 17:00. Hail fell in the Consolação district at 15:40, and a gust of 88.9 kilometers an hour (about 55 mph) hit Congonhas Airport at 16:44.

The city said 42 millimeters (1.7 inches) fell in 40 minutes around the Anhangabú stream, as much as the city expects over 11 days of October, SBT News reported. Firefighters used boats to bring four stranded people out of the Anhangabú tunnel, which closed at 15:38, and the city said its six drainage pumps ran without a break but could not clear the water.

In the Vila Mariana district the CGE raised a higher alert from 16:30 to 17:00 because the Sapateiro stream overflowed on Avenida Quarto Centenário, near Ibirapuera Park, where a gauge read 67.8 millimeters (2.7 inches). The city also suspended its weekday plate-based driving ban, known as the rodízio, from 17:00 to 20:00, and traffic jams passed 900 kilometers (about 560 miles).

The Death and the Disruption

One woman died when a landslide hit a house in Brasilândia, in the north of the city, the state government confirmed. Residents pulled her out before rescue crews arrived, and the news site of broadcaster Record reported that she had not been identified.

Between 15:00 and 18:00 firefighters answered 17 calls for floods, 11 for fallen trees and four for collapses, and the state Civil Defense sent 46 severe-rain alerts. The airport operator Aena canceled four departures and two landings at Congonhas, and the Japão-Liberdade Metro station flooded, although the state said trains and the Metro kept running.

More rain followed on Friday 16 October, when the CGE put the whole city on flood watch from 01:47 to 04:55, with alerts for overflowing streams in Santo Amaro and Ipiranga, and the west, south and southeast zones and the Marginal Pinheiros expressway were on watch again from 18:35 to 19:50. The CGE said the evening system moved fast, which limited the flood points, though its stations recorded up to 60.2 millimeters (2.4 inches) at Vila Constância that day.

Greater Sao Paulo Floods Follow a Record September

September 2026 was the wettest September since the CGE began measuring in 1995, with 211.5 millimeters (8.3 inches) in the first 12 days beating the 198.6 millimeters (7.8 inches) of 2015. The month ended at 295.1 millimeters (11.6 inches), more than four times the 66.0 millimeters (2.6 inches) of a normal September, the CGE said.

Because the ground was already soaked, the CGE warned on 14 October that the potential for floods and landslides in risk areas stayed high through Friday 16 October. The chart sets the two months against their norms, using the CGE’s own bulletins.

What the State Is Doing

The state runs a preparation program called SP Sempre Alerta, Operation El Niño 2026/2027, and held a workshop for 96 municipalities around São José do Rio Preto on 20 October. The state said its spending in that one inland region reaches R$7.29 million (about US$1.45 million), including 12 water trucks at R$6.22 million (about US$1.24 million) and more than 3,800 emergency-kit items at R$522,715 (about US$104,000).

The workshops train local officials in rain response, shelter management and contingency plans. All amounts here use the Central Bank of Brazil’s PTAX selling rate of R$5.0140 per US dollar on 20 October.

What It Means for You

If you are flying in or out of São Paulo this week, check your flight with the airline, because one afternoon storm was enough to cancel six flights at Congonhas on 14 October. Allow extra time on the roads, since tunnels and the rodízio rules can change within the hour.

Visitors can get free Civil Defense alerts by sending a local postal code to 40199, and the emergency numbers are 199 for Civil Defense and 193 for firefighters. Stay out of tunnels, underpasses and low avenues when the CGE declares a flood watch, which it posts on its news page.

For US companies with staff in the city, the exposure so far is short delays on the roads and at the airport, and no official damage tally has been published. Our São Paulo city guide and the São Paulo Daily Brief for 21 October cover transport and the day’s outlook.

What Is Not Known

We found no published damage tally from the city and no count of fallen trees or affected households, and the woman who died in Brasilândia had not been identified in the reports reviewed. The CGE figures are averages for the city of São Paulo, not for the wider metropolitan region, so regional totals are not known.

It is not known whether the showers due on Thursday 22 October will be strong enough to cause new flooding, because the soil is still wet after a record September. How much rain El Niño will add this season is also unknown, and the state’s preparation program is built around that risk.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many people died in the Greater Sao Paulo floods?

The state government confirmed one death, a woman killed by a landslide in Brasilândia on 14 October. We found no confirmed second death in the official bulletins reviewed through 20 October.

Is more rain coming to São Paulo?

The CGE expects isolated afternoon showers on Thursday 22 October after a dry Wednesday 21 October. October rain is already 13.6% above normal at 127.2 millimeters.

Is São Paulo safe to visit after the floods?

No flood points were active early on 21 October, according to the CGE. Visitors should still check flights and avoid tunnels and low streets whenever a flood watch is declared.

Sources: CGE, São Paulo city government, weather bulletins of 14, 16 and 20 to 21 October 2026; Agência SP, Civil Defense forecast for 21 October 2026; Agência SP, Civil Defense alert and storm response of 14 and 15 October 2026; Agência SP, Operation El Niño workshop, 20 October 2026; Record TV news site, storm leaves one dead, 14 October 2026; Jovem Pan, Congonhas flight cancellations, 14 October 2026; SBT News, Anhangabú tunnel and 40-minute rainfall, 14 October 2026; Central Bank of Brazil, PTAX rate of 20 October 2026.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief

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