An extratropical cyclone swept across south-eastern Brazil late on 10 December, unleashing winds that topped 100 km/h and plunging much of the São Paulo metropolitan region into darkness. By the early hours of 11 December more than 1.4 million homes and businesses remained without electricity, according to utility Enel. The violent gusts felled at least 231 trees, damaged power lines and caused water-pumping stations to fail, compounding the disruption for residents and travellers alike.
The aviation system bore the brunt of the chaos. Congonhas Airport (CGH), Brazil’s busiest business-shuttle hub, suspended operations for several hours on Wednesday evening. By Thursday morning the airport had logged a further 31 arrival and 15 departure cancellations, on top of 181 cancellations the previous day. International gateway São Paulo/Guarulhos (GRU) recorded at least 140 delays and 17 cancellations over the same period, while smaller numbers of flights were also scrubbed at Viracopos and Rio de Janeiro’s Galeão. Airlines LATAM, GOL and Azul have issued flexible rebooking policies, but the knock-on effect is rippling through domestic networks and threatening onward international connections.
For travellers reshuffling their itineraries, securing the right travel documents is just as critical as finding an available seat. VisaHQ’s Brazil portal (https://www.visahq.com/brazil/) lets passengers and corporate travel teams quickly check visa requirements when routing changes add unexpected layovers or re-entries, and its specialists can expedite any new paperwork so that weather-related delays don’t snowball into compliance problems.
![Storm Knocks Out Power and Cancels Hundreds of Flights in São Paulo]()
Business travellers are reporting missed meetings and cascading itinerary changes as aircraft and crews fall out of position. Corporate travel managers should expect elevated mis-connect risk over the next 48 hours and advise employees to pad connection times, travel with carry-on baggage where possible, and monitor airline apps closely. Importantly, passengers whose flights are cancelled or delayed by more than four hours are entitled to re-accommodation or reimbursement under Brazil’s ANAC Resolution 400; companies may wish to remind travellers of these rights.
Logistics providers are also feeling the strain. São Paulo’s cargo terminals have instituted backlog-clearing plans and priority queues for temperature-sensitive freight, while ride-share and taxi wait-times at CGH and GRU have doubled because of traffic-light outages and improvised detours around downed trees. Event organisers with delegates converging on the city for year-end conferences should consider hybrid or remote participation options until power is fully restored.
Although Enel has deployed 1,300 technicians, the company has not provided a firm restoration timeline, prompting strong criticism from Mayor Ricardo Nunes and renewed calls for tighter regulatory oversight of the Italian-controlled utility. Travellers should therefore plan for intermittent blackouts and the possibility of further flight cancellations until at least the evening of 12 December, when meteorologists expect winds to subside.
The aviation system bore the brunt of the chaos. Congonhas Airport (CGH), Brazil’s busiest business-shuttle hub, suspended operations for several hours on Wednesday evening. By Thursday morning the airport had logged a further 31 arrival and 15 departure cancellations, on top of 181 cancellations the previous day. International gateway São Paulo/Guarulhos (GRU) recorded at least 140 delays and 17 cancellations over the same period, while smaller numbers of flights were also scrubbed at Viracopos and Rio de Janeiro’s Galeão. Airlines LATAM, GOL and Azul have issued flexible rebooking policies, but the knock-on effect is rippling through domestic networks and threatening onward international connections.
For travellers reshuffling their itineraries, securing the right travel documents is just as critical as finding an available seat. VisaHQ’s Brazil portal (https://www.visahq.com/brazil/) lets passengers and corporate travel teams quickly check visa requirements when routing changes add unexpected layovers or re-entries, and its specialists can expedite any new paperwork so that weather-related delays don’t snowball into compliance problems.
Business travellers are reporting missed meetings and cascading itinerary changes as aircraft and crews fall out of position. Corporate travel managers should expect elevated mis-connect risk over the next 48 hours and advise employees to pad connection times, travel with carry-on baggage where possible, and monitor airline apps closely. Importantly, passengers whose flights are cancelled or delayed by more than four hours are entitled to re-accommodation or reimbursement under Brazil’s ANAC Resolution 400; companies may wish to remind travellers of these rights.
Logistics providers are also feeling the strain. São Paulo’s cargo terminals have instituted backlog-clearing plans and priority queues for temperature-sensitive freight, while ride-share and taxi wait-times at CGH and GRU have doubled because of traffic-light outages and improvised detours around downed trees. Event organisers with delegates converging on the city for year-end conferences should consider hybrid or remote participation options until power is fully restored.
Although Enel has deployed 1,300 technicians, the company has not provided a firm restoration timeline, prompting strong criticism from Mayor Ricardo Nunes and renewed calls for tighter regulatory oversight of the Italian-controlled utility. Travellers should therefore plan for intermittent blackouts and the possibility of further flight cancellations until at least the evening of 12 December, when meteorologists expect winds to subside.
