Occurrence of a tornado in the municipality of Piraí do Sul in the state of Paraná

Abstract

Summary: Tornadoes are atmospheric phenomena with very intense winds, causing serious economic and human damages, as they can injure and kill people. The southern region of Brazil has been suffering from intense rains, storms, and tornadoes. Tornadoes are rarely recorded due to the difficulties in their identification. The municipality of Piraí do Sul - PR experienced a severe event on October 30, 2023, which caused extensive damage to two rural properties. This research aimed to identify the activity that occurred, describing the damages, path, and destructive force. Field activities were carried out for georeferencing the affected locations using GPS, photographic records of the damages, and interviews with eyewitnesses. These actions allowed the identification of a tornado activity, mapping its path through the properties, determining the preferred direction of the phenomenon, and classifying its destructive force equivalent to an EF1. The recognition of tornado activities in the country is an emergency. Several tornadoes have already occurred; however, the lack of information about them can leave the population vulnerable in terms of planning and organization regarding resilience in activities related to this phenomenon.

Keywords: severe storms. path. resilience. damages.