MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Six people missing after shipwreck off Guanabara Bay in Rio de Janeiro

Local authorities are searching for six adults, a teenager, and a child

Wind-chill temperatures in Rio de Janeiro reached 58°C Saturday before a storm broke out, leaving eight people missing following a shipwreck off Guanabara Bay. It was the highest temperature since 2009 when wind-chill measurements started to be taken. By Sunday the temperature dropped to 41.1 °C amid a strong storm. The boat capsized at sea off Paquetá Island in the middle of the storm.

“The presence of hot air at various levels of the atmosphere, together with the surface temperature and humidity, caused a wind-chill at the Santa Cruz station of 58 °C”, Alerta Rio's Juliana Hermsdorff explained in a statement.

After a sunny morning, a strong storm hit the city in the afternoon, causing the shipwreck of a boat carrying 14 people in Guanabara Bay, six of whom have been rescued, according to local media. Those still missing are six adults, a teenager, and a child.

Lifeguards and divers began to search the area of the shipwreck with help from a helicopter, boats, and jet skis, the Military Fire Brigade of Rio de Janeiro said.

The boat was traveling in the vicinity of Paquetá Island in Guanabara Bay when it was hit by the storm Sunday afternoon. The Brazilian Navy also said in a statement that it had opened an investigation to determine the causes of the shipwreck between Ilha do Governador and Paquetá Island.