Tornado Tears Through Brazil's Chapecó Airport: Terminal and Hangars Damaged, All Flights Suspended Indefinitely
Chapecó, Brazil — Civil Defense officials in Brazil's Santa Catarina state confirmed that a tornado struck the western city of Chapecó on the morning of November 4, with a weather station of the National Institute of Meteorology (INMET) recording gusts of up to 126 km/h. Serafin Enoss Bertaso Airport, the city's airport, suffered severe damage to its passenger terminal and hangars, and its operator, Voe Xap, announced the same day that all arrivals and departures were suspended indefinitely.
The storm passed through at about 10:30 a.m. Metal roofing at the terminal entrance was torn off, windows were shattered and metal structures twisted, and hangars and ground-service equipment were also damaged. The operator said technical teams were assessing the damage and determining what was required for a safe resumption of flights, and asked passengers not to travel to the terminal until further notice. As of November 5, no reopening date had been announced. Brazil's GOL airline cancelled all of its flights to and from Chapecó from November 4 through November 7.
A second tornado was confirmed in nearby Xanxerê during the same period. Power was cut across much of Chapecó, affecting about 100,000 customers, with more than 200,000 customers across the state losing power at the peak. Municipal schools suspended afternoon classes that day, and state schools suspended in-person classes on Wednesday and Thursday. In a preliminary assessment, the state Civil Defense said 58 municipalities had been affected by the storm system and 1,438 homes damaged or otherwise affected. In the first official updates, no injuries had been reported in Chapecó.
Chapecó Airport is the main air gateway for the city and for western Santa Catarina, with a 2,060-metre runway, and is operated by Voe Xap. When it reopens will depend on the results of technical inspections and the completion of repairs.
Source: Santa Catarina Civil Defense
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：巴西沙佩科的塞拉芬·埃诺斯·贝尔塔索机场（资料照片）。照片 CC BY-SA 3.0（Patrick Krug），经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Serafin Enoss Bertaso Airport in Chapecó, Brazil (file photo). CC BY-SA 3.0 (Patrick Krug), via Wikimedia Commons.
