Taylor Swift fan succumbs to sweltering heat ahead of Brazil show

Large swaths of South America are in the midst of a streak of historic weather this month as patterns lurch between tumultuous springtime thunderstorms and unprecedented heat blanketing the continent’s heartland.

This period of atmospheric turmoil has received more international attention than usual given that Taylor Swift is crisscrossing the continent this month as part of her global Eras Tour, a concert series that’s become a multi-billion dollar cultural phenomenon.

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Dangerous weather has forced Swift to postpone two of her concerts, first in Buenos Aires after torrential thunderstorms drenched the Argentine capital. Extreme heat postponed another concert this weekend after one fan reportedly died after collapsing in the sweltering venue.

Fatal and historic heat strikes central South America

It’s been a brutal week across central South America as unprecedented, mind-boggling heat swept the central portion of the continent. It’s the middle of spring in the Southern Hemisphere.

A small town in northern Paraguay may have recorded the warmest low-temperature ever reliably measured anywhere in South America. Several mornings in recent days saw the low temperature in Mariscal Estigarribia dip to just 34.0°C or possibly even warmer, which is about six degrees warmer than Toronto’s hottest seasonal high temperature in the heart of summer.

Searing afternoon temperatures shattered dozens of daily and monthly temperature records across northern Paraguay and Brazil, with daytime highs in the 40s not uncommon throughout the region. It’s a humid heat, as well, which exacerbates the stress put on the human body.

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One concertgoer died on Friday after fainting in the heat waiting for Taylor Swift’s premiere concert to begin in Rio de Janeiro, Reuters reported this weekend. The temperature in Brazil’s second-largest city rose into the upper 30s on Friday afternoon, with steamy tropical moisture as dew points climbed as high as 24°C.

Given the tragic loss of life and ongoing brutal conditions roasting Brazil this weekend, Taylor Swift chose to postpone her performance, she said in an Instagram post on Saturday.

“I can’t believe I’m writing these words but it is with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show,” she wrote in her announcement.

“The decision has been made to postpone tonight’s show due to the extreme temperatures in Rio. The safety and well-being of my fans, fellow performers, and crew has to and always will come first,” she added.

Torrential downpours delay Buenos Aires concert

The same pattern allowing the heat to build this week prompted rounds of severe thunderstorms in Argentina a week earlier.

A satellite image of thunderstorms over Buenos Aires on Nov. 10, 2023.

Swift’s opening performance on Buenos Aires went on as expected on Thursday, Nov. 9, but the “truly chaotic” weather that plagued the capital city the following day proved too much to bear.

“I love a rain show but I’m never going to endanger my fans or my fellow performers and crew,” Swift said on social media announcing the postponement. Clearer weather the following day allowed the concert to take place without a hitch.

Argentina is no stranger to rough weather during the spring. Powerful low-pressure systems spiralling across South America frequently unleash severe thunderstorms throughout the centre of the continent during the spring and summer months.

Inland sections of Argentina, known as the pampas, often see conditions favourable for the development of classic supercells that can produce incredibly large hail, flooding rains, and tornadoes.

Thumbnail courtesy of Getty Images- 473089840.