SÃO PAULO: A Dark Day in the Brazilian Megacity
Darkness enveloped São Paulo on Monday (Aug. 19), around 3 pm, surprising residents. The phenomenon resulted from the the arrival of a cold front in the east of the state, with heavy clouds, and winds that have brought particulate matter originating from the many wildfires in Paraguay, Bolivia, Pantanal, and Mato Grosso do Sul.
Throughout the day, social network users speculated about the causes of the blackout and linked it to fires that have occurred in Rondonia and the Amazon region in recent days. Experts have explained, however, that the winds more likely brought fine dust from Paraguay and Bolivia fires in this case. But fires deforesting the Amazon Basin also have increasingly affected the Paulista capital.
This year Brazil has had the highest number of forest fires since 2013. As of Sunday (Aug. 18), there were already 71,497 fires burning in the country. The record was 2016, with 66,622 fires. Mato Grosso is the state with the highest number of fires so far in 2019, with 13,641, an increase of 88% over the same period last year. The many fires deforesting the Amazon Basin also have increasingly affected the Paulista capital.
Photo: São Paulo last Monday at 4pm, by Otavio Valle/Folhapress
Source: Folha de São Paulo, Aug. 20, 2019