Cities in SC cancel parties due to El Niño weather alert

With the forecast of El Niño and the risk of extreme events in Santa Catarina, some city halls in the state are already beginning to cancel traditional festivals and reinforce prevention measures.

The decision follows the Climate Alert Decree announced by the State Government and Civil Defense, which establishes early actions to face possible floods, landslides and flash floods in the coming months throughout the south of the country.

The state decree has a preventive nature and does not mean that the State is in emergency at this time. According to meteorologists, the state of Santa Catarina is experiencing a climate neutral scenario, but there is an 80% probability of El Niño starting between July and August.

Among the first practical consequences of the climate alert are changes in traditional events in municipalities in Santa Catarina.

In Rio do Oeste, the City Hall and the Organizing Committee announced the postponement of the Polenta Festival, which would take place in July this year. The event has been moved to 2027.

According to the municipal administration, the decision was taken in a preventive and responsible manner given the El Niño climate forecasts, which indicate the possibility of heavy rains and floods in the region. The city hall informed that, at this moment, the focus will be directed to prevention, preparation and protection actions for the population.

In Agrolândia, the City Hall also decided to cancel FECOL, the municipality's traditional festival scheduled for July. The municipal administration states that the priority is to concentrate resources on flood mitigation actions and preparation for possible floods.

Another municipality that also announced preventive measures was Gaspar. The administration declared a state of climate alert and created a crisis management committee to coordinate actions under the guidance of Civil Defense. Furthermore, it decided to cancel this year's edition of the municipality's Expofair.

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The State's Climate Alert Decree also determines that municipalities reinforce preventive actions, such as cleaning drainage systems, reviewing contingency plans, inspections in risk areas and updating the mapping of regions susceptible to landslides and floods.

*Under the supervision of Thiago Félix

Source: CNN