Wind up to 64 km/h in Foz: why it's so windy, and when it will stop

Friday and Saturday gusts exceed any July day since 2015; shift arrives on Tuesday (22)

The wind shaking Foz do Iguaçu since Thursday is a north wind that precedes a cold front, and it has a date to end. Gusts of 62 to 64 km/h recorded on July 17 and 18 surpass any July day of the last ten years in the city (the monthly average is 32 km/h). The forecast shows a peak on Saturday (19), weakening on Sunday and Monday, and a shift to the southwest on Tuesday (22), when the gust drops to 34 km/h and the weather calms.

What is this wind

Since Thursday (16), the wind in Foz has been blowing steadily from the north-northeast (NNE): the classic pattern that precedes the arrival of a cold front. Warm air from the continent’s interior is funneled southward in a low-pressure corridor; the closer the front, the stronger the corridor. It is not a storm: it is the announcement of one.

What the numbers show

Marco Três compared this week’s gusts with all July days from 2015 to 2025 (Open-Meteo archive for Foz coordinates):

Day	Maximum gust	Historical position
Wednesday (15)	40 km/h	79th percentile of July
Thursday (16)	52 km/h	97th percentile
Friday (17)	62 km/h	above all July days of the decade
Saturday (18)	64 km/h	above all July days of the decade

The average gust for a July day in Foz is 32 km/h. The windiest July day in ten years had recorded 69.5 km/h: the last two days came close.

When it stops

According to the model forecast (Open-Meteo, updated this Friday):

Saturday (19): peak, gusts up to 64 km/h, still from the north;
Sunday (20) and Monday (21): weaken to 53-54 km/h;
Tuesday (22): the front passes, the wind turns southwest and the gust drops to 34 km/h;
Wednesday (23): 24 km/h, within the month’s normal range.

How it affects outings

Gusts above 60 km/h knock down beach umbrellas, sway walkways and disrupt viewpoint photos, but they do not close attractions by themselves. Nautical tours (Macuco, Kattamaram, river boat) are the most wind-sensitive: the decision to operate is left to each operator on the day. On windy days, the morning is usually calmer than the afternoon; the late-afternoon at Marco das Três Fronteiras remains open, with the river more choppy than usual.

Method

Gusts and forecast: Open-Meteo (hourly and daily data for Foz do Iguaçu, CC BY 4.0 license). Historical comparison: Open-Meteo archive 2015-2025, all July days (341 days). Analysis: Marco Três. The numbers in this article were read on 07/18/2026 and the forecast may change: follow the 14-day forecast.