Weather alerts: see the regions of Brazil that are alert for suffocating heat, wind and storms

The National Institute of Meteorology (Inmet) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (Mapa) has, this Thursday (21), seven meteorological warnings in force in Brazil.

The main one puts eight states in the South, Southeast and Central-West of Brazil on red alert (great danger) for a strong suffocating heat wave with temperatures that can exceed 40 °C and low humidity. The warning remains valid until late Sunday afternoon and affects the following areas:

• The entire state of São Paulo;
• The entire state of Mato Grosso do Sul;
• North of Paraná;
• Mining Triangle;
• Central-South, northeast, southeast, southwest and north of Mato Grosso;
• South, center, north and northwest of Goiás;
• South of Pará;
• East of Tocantins.

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Other areas are under orange alert (danger) for the heat wave, which indicates a health risk caused by temperatures up to 5º C above average. Are they:

• The entire state of Rio de Janeiro;
• South, west, northwest and north of Minas;
• West of Tocantins;
• South of Pará;
• The remainder of the state of Paraná;
• The entire state of Santa Catarina;
• North and northwest of Rio Grande do Sul.

Rio Grande do Sul and the southern and western portions of Santa Catarina are under yellow alert (potential danger) for storms, valid until this morning. Up to 50 mm/day of rain, winds of up to 60 km/h and hail are forecast. Inmet also warns that there is a risk of electricity cuts, damage to crops, falling tree branches and flooding.

The state was hit by heavy rains at the beginning of September, which caused flooding and left dozens dead in the biggest natural disaster in Rio Grande do Sul’s history.

Acre, Rondônia, much of Amazonas, the northwest of Mato Grosso and the southwest of Pará are also under yellow alert, but for intense rain. In the region, the forecast of rain and gusts of wind is the same as in Rio Grande do Sul, but without the risk of hail.

There is also a yellow gale warning in force for seven states in the Northeast. Inmet predicts winds of up to 60 km/h in the interior of the region, in an area that covers parts of Bahia, Alagoas, Pernambuco, Paraíba, Rio Grande do Norte, Ceará and Piauí.

Organs most affected by heat

Which organs in the human body suffer most from heat waves? Cardiologist responds | CNN NEW DAY

In an interview with CNN this Wednesday (20), Stéphanie Rizk, cardiologist at Rede D’Or and Sírio-Libanês, told which organs in the human body are most damaged by the conditions imposed by the heat wave. See below:,

Kidneys

According to Rizk, the kidneys are the most affected organs, mainly due to dehydration caused by water consumed by the thermal regulation mechanism — which makes the body sweat to reduce body temperature.

“[O mais prejudicado é] the kidney first. Initially, it reduces filtration, concentrates urine, and can increase the formation of kidney stones”, explained the cardiologist.

Heart

As the doctor pointed out, the heart can be affected because, in the process of regulating body temperature, vasodilation occurs, that is, an increase in blood flow. This increases the heart rate, which, in turn, can be dangerous if the person has any previous comorbidity.

“The heart [é afetado], especially if someone has heart failure. With vasodilation, which occurs for us to dissipate this heat), the heart accelerates and this can culminate in some decompensation of a disease”, he stated.

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