Electric company of Paraná defines storm as 'worst climate event' of 2026 from an energy point of view; 424 thousand units are without electricity

Copel, the Paraná electricity company, defined the storm recorded this Saturday afternoon (7) in Paraná as "the worst weather event from the point of view of the scope of the effects on the energy network that supplies the State". Around 424 thousand consumer units are without power in the last bulletin sent by the company, at 6 pm.

During the peak of power outages, around 5 pm, 478,500 consumer units were left without electricity across the state. Copel also reported that the number could increase, due to the storm moving towards the North and Northwest of Paraná in the early evening.

In Piraquara, a storm with strong winds knocked down a pole. — Photo: Photo: Elessandra Amaral/RPC

"It is the biggest contingency of the year, as part of another consecutive El Niño weather event. Our work plan is active, with teams distributed throughout the State to meet the demands of customers who have experienced power outages. It is continuous work to restore energy, safely, as quickly as possible", says Copel's general director of Distribution, Denis Mollica.

According to Copel, this year, the largest volume of electricity interruptions had been recorded on October 4th, on the day of the 1st round of elections, at 7:40 am, when 325 thousand consumer units switched off at the peak.

During the afternoon, several cities in the state recorded winds above 50km/h, according to Simepar. In Loanda, in the Northwest, winds reached 96.5 km/h, at 2 pm. In Cerro Azul, they were at 99 km/h at 2 pm.

Tree fell in the Bonsucesso neighborhood, in Guarapuava. — Photo: Photo: João Quaquio/RPC

Units without electricity by region:

State total at 5:30 pm: 424 thousand

Eastern Region (Curitiba, Metropolitan Region and Coast): 94.8 thousand

Curitiba: 52.7 thousand

Central-South Region: 92.6 thousand

Ponta Grossa: 25.9 thousand

North Region: 92.2 thousand

London: 6.4 thousand

Northwest Region: 80.9 thousand

Maringá: 7.5 thousand

West Region: 8.5 thousand

Rattlesnake: 1,300

Southwest Region: 8.5 thousand

Colonel Vivida: 638

Copel also advised the population to stay away from the damaged power grid and informed that teams are working to replenish it.

Civil Defense provides assistance in Curitiba

According to information from Marcelo Santos, coordinator of the Civil Defense of Curitiba, in the capital of Paraná the team has already recorded more than 60 assistances, with 300 requests related to falling branches or trees. The most affected neighborhoods are Xaxim, Alto Boqueirão, Boqueirão, Hauer and Cajuru.

To date, there is no record of displaced families in Curitiba.