Brazil

Brazil: Government to Require Special Permits to Visit the Amazon

Date: May 1st, 2008 |

The government intends to send Congress a bill within months that will require all foreign visitors to the Brazilian Amazon to obtain a permit to be there or face a whopping fine of 100,000 reals ($60,000). The bill will apply to all foreigners, whether tourists, businesspeople or employees of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Conservative politicians are [read more]

Brazil: Possible Yellow Fever Deaths

Date: January 17th, 2008 |

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The U.S. Embassy in Brasilia reported that recent fatal cases of possible yellow fever have occurred in Goias and Brazil’s Federal District (including Brasilia). Tests could take weeks to confirm that yellow fever was the culprit, but meanwhile travelers should be aware that vaccination for yellow fever is recommended for all rural areas of the [read more]

Brazil: Shootout Closes Rio’s Airport Runway

Date: June 27th, 2007 |

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Less than three weeks before the start of the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, military police and alleged criminals clashed in a shootout at the international airport causing one runway to be shut down for 35 minutes and delaying flights from Sao Paulo to Rio. The gunfight occurred as police continued their crackdown [read more]

Brazil: Air Traffic System Breaks Down Again

Date: March 21st, 2007 |

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Brazil’s troubled air traffic control system failed again March 18, causing lengthy flight delays and stranding thousands of travelers. First, communications equipment failed at a control center in Brasilia, then power went out at Brasilia’s airport, compounding the problem. Some 30 percent of flights scheduled for takeoff March 19 were delayed, with troubles spilling over [read more]

Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay: Dengue Fever Alert

Date: February 14th, 2007 |

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The rapid spread of dengue fever in parts of Bolivia, Brazil and Paraguay has caused authorities to declare a health alert for the disease. Higher rainfall than usual and uncommonly warm weather have fueled the outbreak, which is worst in Brazil and Paraguay. In Brazil’s Mato Grosso do Sul state, authorities estimate that some 15,000 [read more]

Brazil: Dengue Fever Crisis in Rio de Janeiro

Date: March 26th, 2008 |

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Some 33,000 people have contracted dengue fever and 48 have died in Rio de Janeiro state this year in what appears to be an epidemic of the disease. Already more people have died this year than in all of 2002, the last year Rio had a dengue epidemic, and the vast majority have been in [read more]

Brazil: Air Traffic System in Chaos

Date: July 25th, 2007 |

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A deadly plane crash in Sao Paulo July 17 confirmed the danger of Congonhas airport’s short runway and a few days later a radar outage over the Amazon created havoc in Brazil’s airspace, forcing 20 international flights to divert to other airports or return to their points of origin. For the next three days more [read more]

Brazil: Security Increased for Pan-Am Games

Date: June 20th, 2007 |

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The army is training hundreds of police officers from outside Rio de Janeiro to act as armed escorts for sports teams and other guests at the Pan-American Games in Rio July 13-29. Authorities will place a total of 18,000 police officers and security force personnel on patrol in the city to maintain order, with a [read more]

Brazil, Paraguay: Dengue Fever Outbreak

Date: March 14th, 2007 |

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An outbreak of dengue fever is occurring in Mato Grosso do Sul, where more than 42,000 cases have been reported since January, with more than 28,000 in the city of Campo Grande alone. Only six deaths have occurred. Officials say the scope of the outbreak has been caused by especially heavy rains this year, which [read more]

Brazil: Air Traffic Delays Continue

Date: December 13th, 2006 |

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Brazil’s troubled air traffic system suffered another setback Dec. 5 when a communications system failed, forcing authorities to halt virtually all takeoffs from Brasilia, Belo Horizonte, and Sao Paulo’s domestic airport. Chaos ruled as hundreds of flights were delayed and many passengers had to spend the night at airports. It took a day to clear [read more]