Landslides after heavy rain on Tuesday blocked the main access route to the ports of Paranaguá and Antonina, said the Portos do Paraná on its website. An update on Wednesday morning noted that the road remained closed. Brazil’s Federal Highway Police asked drivers to avoid the road.
On Tuesday, when about 400 vehicles were expected, only 141 entered the ports. According to data from the Directorate of Operations of Portos do Paraná, from 00:00 to 08:30 on Wednesday, only four trucks arrived to unload bulk vegetables – the Port of Paranaguá’s main products – for export.
The online statement indicated that operations would not be affected “at least until the end of the week” because of stockpiled goods. However, if access is not restored by the weekend, the port authority expects to have a shortage of export cargo by Sunday or Monday.
Portos do Paraná suspended appointments on Wednesday and Thursday in order to deal with any trucks that arrive, with or without an appointment.
When roads reopen, the port authority plans to continue to operate without appointments for 12 hours to allow trucks already in the area to be processed.
