Brazil's Porto Alegre airport to stay shut to Dec

The Salgado Filho international airport in Porto Alegre, in flood-hit Rio Grande do Sul state, is expected to remain closed until December, German airport management company Fraport said.

The airport sustained significant damage in the record floods that hit that state in late April and early May. The floodwaters only recently receded, allowing Fraport to begin cleaning the terminal and clearing the runway.

Prior to the floods, the airport had forecast that it would have 5,404 domestic and international flights and transport over 608,000 passengers in April.

The company has yet to issue a firm assessment of the damage to the terminal and runway, but hopes that the airport will resume operations by the end of the year.

Some flights have temporarily been redirected to the nearby Canoas air force base and Fraport is operating a temporary terminal at a shopping mall in Canoas.

The airport was Brazil's eighth busiest in passengers transported in 2023.

The floods have left at least 172 dead and over 579,000 people displaced, according to the state's civil defense.