clima ·
Paraná River rises 5 meters in 24 hours to 21.88 m on our gauge
Guia 3 newsroom · edited by Annie GrellmannEspañolPortuguês
The Paraná River read 21.88 m at 11 am on 12 October on the ANA gauge upstream of the Friendship Bridge, 5.09 m higher than 24 hours earlier and three times the median of our series. Itaipu expects it to keep rising until Tuesday, 13 October.
The Paraná River read 21.88 m at 11 am on 12 October at ANA station 64918000, 7.5 km upstream of the Friendship Bridge. That is 5.09 m higher than 24 hours earlier and about three times the median of the series Guia 3 has tracked since May 2026 (7.29 m). Before this flood, the series high was 15.98 m, on 10 October. On 9 October, when we reported the first record, the river stood at 15.48 m.
Why the Paraná rose so much
The weekend's heavy rain filled the Paraná and Iguazú basins at the same time. Itaipu, 14 km upstream of the bridge, took in 16,735 m³/s on the 11th (ONS) and opened its spillway, returning about 13,900 m³/s to the river through turbines and spillway. On the morning of 12 October, at 9 am, the dam began releasing 17,318 m³/s, the largest volume in 12 months, according to the Misiones press. Below the dam, the Paraná also receives the Iguazú, which set the record of our series at the Falls early on 12 October.
What Itaipu forecasts
Itaipu's Flood Committee bulletin of Sunday 11 October forecasts a level of 115.10 m on Monday 12 and 115.14 m on Tuesday 13 at the Friendship Bridge, up from 110.4 m on Sunday morning. The dam alerted civil defense in Brazil and Paraguay and reported a possible impact on homes and structures on the Brazilian side too.
Itaipu's level and our gauge cannot be compared: Itaipu's figure is altitude, the ANA gauge is the station's local scale. Both rise and fall together.
Who is at risk
- Ciudad del Este: the low-lying riverside zone, such as the San Rafael neighborhood, floods first; families have already been moved to shelters, according to Itaipu.
- Foz do Iguaçu: riverside areas along the Paraná, according to the dam's warning. Civil defense: 199.
- Rain: INMET has an orange storm alert for Foz until 11:59 pm today, with flash-flood risk, and Paraguay's DMH has an alert for northern Alto Paraná.
- On the river: in Puerto Iguazú, Argentina's Naval Prefecture suspended boat tours, recreational boating and local cross-border river traffic on 12 October. On the Brazilian side, check with the operator before any boat trip.
The hourly river level is on border weather.
Source: ANA (station 64918000) and ONS, with Itaipu Binacional's flood bulletin.
Frequently asked questions
- Will the Paraná River keep rising?
- Itaipu forecasts a rise until Tuesday, 13 October, to a level of 115.14 m at the Friendship Bridge. The forecast depends on rain in the coming days.
- Is the 21.88 m gauge reading the same as Itaipu's 115 m level?
- No. Itaipu's level is altitude; 21.88 m is the local scale of the ANA station. Both rise and fall together, but they cannot be compared.
- Who should I call in a flood?
- In Foz do Iguaçu, civil defense on 199 and the fire department on 193. In Paraguay and Argentina, the emergency number is 911.
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- DMH issues weather warning for Ciudad del Este: heavy rain until 12/10 at 23:59
- INMET issues orange alert for Foz do Iguaçu: thunderstorms until 12/10 at 23:59
- SMN issues orange alert for Puerto Iguazú: thunderstorms until 12/10 at 20:59
- INMET issues orange alert for Foz do Iguaçu: thunderstorms until 11/10 at 23:59
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