South America Weather & Natural Hazards Today – November 5, 2026

By Paul Harrison, Orbis Weather · Nov 5, 2026

At a glance

Tornadoes and violent storms in southern Brazil were South America’s main hazard in the 24 hours to Thursday morning, November 5, and the storm threat is now shifting north toward São Paulo.

• Brazil: confirmed tornadoes in Chapecó and Xanxerê, Santa Catarina, on Wednesday; thousands of homes damaged across the South. INMET has orange storm alerts around São Paulo and Paraná today.
• Argentina: yellow alerts for storms in the north, rain and snow in the Patagonian Andes, and Zonda wind in Mendoza.
• Colombia and Ecuador: landslide and flood alerts remain widespread after recent deadly rain in Ecuador.
• Earthquakes: quiet, with no magnitude 4 or greater on the continent.
• Volcanoes: no major new eruption; Sabancaya, Puracé and Nevados de Chillán remain on alert.

National weather services and civil defense agencies issue the official warnings; follow them first.

Storms and weather warnings

Southern Brazil is cleaning up after tornadoes and violent storms on Wednesday, and Brazil’s national weather service, INMET, has moved the storm risk north to São Paulo and Paraná for Thursday.

Brazil: tornadoes in Santa Catarina, storm damage in Rio Grande do Sul

Santa Catarina’s civil defense agency confirmed tornadoes on Wednesday morning, November 4, in Chapecó and Xanxerê in the west of the state, Agência Brasil reported. Radar showed rotating winds inside intense thunderstorms over Chapecó. An INMET station in the city recorded a gust of 126 km/h (78 mph), while a state civil defense station measured 93 km/h (58 mph). The storm damaged hangars and the main lounge at Chapecó airport.

The firefighters’ service (CBMSC) reported no deaths as of Wednesday afternoon. Across Santa Catarina, storms since Sunday have affected 4,441 homes in 86 municipalities, and 13 have declared a state of emergency. In Rio Grande do Sul, the state civil defense counted 102 affected cities, 6,373 damaged homes and 24 people injured, most of them (15) in Nova Prata. Mix Vale, citing the same agency, gave 20 injured. It also reported more than 200,000 properties without power in Santa Catarina after Wednesday’s storms.

Brazil: Thursday’s alerts

Sources: Metrópoles and O Tempo, reporting INMET bulletins on Thursday morning. O Tempo said an extratropical cyclone forming over the Atlantic near the South and Southeast coast is organizing a cold front. Heat persists ahead of the front (see Fires and heat).

Argentina: yellow alerts in the north, the Andes and Mendoza

Argentina’s National Meteorological Service (SMN) has yellow alerts in force for Thursday, La Nación and La Gacetareported:

• Storms in Salta, Formosa and Misiones: 30 to 50 mm (1.2–2.0 in) of rain, hail and gusts up to 90 km/h (56 mph).
• Rain in the Andes of Neuquén, Río Negro and Chubut: 10 to 30 mm (0.4–1.2 in), with rain and snow at higher elevations.
• Zonda wind in southern Mendoza: 30 to 50 km/h (19–31 mph), with gusts that may exceed 70 km/h (43 mph).

Colombia: widespread landslide alerts

Colombia’s weather and hydrology institute (IDEAM) expects rain across the Pacific, Andean and Caribbean regions on Thursday, although rain had eased in recent hours, Semana reported. Alerts cover 376 municipalities, many for landslides, and 206 river sub-basins for possible flooding.

Floods and landslides

The worst recent flooding hit Santa Catarina, Brazil, where the storms also brought heavy rain. In Lages, crews rescued 76 people after floods, 60 of them from a school in the city center, and another 30 were rescued from a school in Rio do Sul, according to Agência Brasil. Rio Rufino measured 106.4 mm (4.19 in) of rain in 24 hours, the highest total the state civil defense cited, according to Mix Vale. Santa Catarina suspended state school classes on Wednesday and Thursday.

Ecuador’s weather service, INAMHI, had warned of intense rain in coastal provinces including Guayas, Los Ríos and Manabí through 10 a.m. on November 4, Extra reported.

Earthquakes

It was a quiet day for earthquakes in South America. The US Geological Survey (USGS) catalog lists no earthquake of magnitude 4 or greater on the continent or its coasts in the 24 hours to 13:07 UTC (8:07 a.m. EST) on November 5. The only event in the search area was a magnitude 4.5 deep under Chinandega, Nicaragua, in Central America, at 19:55 UTC on November 4, about 99 miles (159 km) down. USGS catalog search, run at 13:07 UTC.

National networks in Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia record many smaller quakes that the USGS global catalog does not list.

Volcanoes

No major new eruption was reported in South America on November 4 or 5. Three Andean volcanoes were erupting in the most recent Smithsonian/USGS Weekly Volcanic Activity Report in the public feed, which covers October 8–14:

Alert levels are set by each country’s agency: SERNAGEOMIN in Chile, the Colombian Geological Survey (SGC) and Peru’s Geophysical Institute (IGP). Their latest bulletins replace the figures above.

Fires and heat

Heat, not fire, is the main dry-weather concern today. Central and northeastern Brazil sit ahead of the cold front, with forecast highs of 39°C (102°F) in Teresina, 35°C (95°F) in Rio de Janeiro, Cuiabá and Goiânia, and 34°C (93°F) in Belo Horizonte, according to Metrópoles. The Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS) lists only low-impact (green) wildfire alerts in South America, among them a 6,088-hectare (15,000-acre) fire in Brazil.

What to watch next

• São Paulo and Paraná, Thursday through Saturday: storms with strong gusts and hail. INMET issues the alerts; São Paulo’s civil defense forecast gusts up to 80 km/h (50 mph).
• Extratropical cyclone off southern Brazil: it is driving a cold front north. INMET and the Paraná weather service, Simepar, will track it.
• Minas Gerais on Friday: INMET has yellow storm alerts for the Triângulo Mineiro and central Minas Gerais, including Belo Horizonte, according to O Tempo.
• Colombia’s landslide risk: IDEAM updates its alerts daily.
• Argentina: SMN alerts for northern provinces, the Patagonian Andes and Mendoza are valid for Thursday; check SMN for Friday’s update.

About this report

This report covers weather and natural hazards across South America in the 24 hours to about 8 a.m. EST (10 a.m. Brasília time) on Thursday, November 5, 2026, with forecasts for the days ahead. It draws on national weather services (INMET in Brazil, SMN in Argentina, IDEAM in Colombia), civil defense agencies, the USGS earthquake catalog, the Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program, GDACS and news reports. Agency figures are preliminary and change as updates arrive, and casualty counts carry their source. National weather services and civil defense agencies issue the official warnings; follow them first.

Glossary

• Extratropical cyclone: a large low-pressure system that forms where warm and cold air meet, common off southern Brazil and Uruguay.
• Zonda: a hot, dry wind that blows down the eastern slopes of the Andes in western Argentina.
• Desabrigados and desalojados: Brazilian terms for people left homeless and needing public shelter, and people who left home but are staying with family or friends.
• Alert levels: INMET uses yellow (potential danger), orange (danger) and red (great danger); Argentina’s SMN uses yellow, orange and red in the same order.

Frequently asked questions

Did anyone die in Wednesday’s tornadoes in Santa Catarina? Santa Catarina’s firefighters reported no deaths as of Wednesday afternoon, according to Agência Brasil. In Rio Grande do Sul, the state civil defense reported 24 people injured.

Is São Paulo at risk today? Yes. INMET has an orange alert covering the São Paulo–Paraná border, including the city of São Paulo, for storms with gusts up to 100 km/h (62 mph) and possible hail.

What is the Zonda wind in Mendoza? It is a warm, dry wind that descends from the Andes. The SMN expects gusts that may exceed 70 km/h (43 mph) in southern Mendoza on Thursday.

Were there any strong earthquakes in South America? No. The USGS catalog lists no earthquake of magnitude 4 or greater on the continent in the 24 hours to Thursday morning.

Sources

Storms and weather

• Agência Brasil: Tornadoes and storms hit Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul
• CartaCapital: Tornadoes hit western Santa Catarina
• Mix Vale: INMET red alert in Santa Catarina and Paraná
• Metrópoles: INMET storm alerts for the center-south
• O Tempo: INMET alerts for cyclone and storms
• La Nación: SMN yellow alerts for November 5
• La Gaceta: Argentina alerts for Thursday
• Semana: IDEAM forecast for November 5

Floods and landslides

• Ecuraices: Ecuador events, Oct 31–Nov 2
• La Verdad de Monagas: Flooding in Ecuador and Peru
• Extra: INAMHI storm warning

Earthquakes, volcanoes and fires

• USGS earthquake catalog search
• Smithsonian/USGS Weekly Volcanic Activity Report feed
• GDACS alert feed