Sawt Falasteen - Rio breaks record for rainiest September amid powerful El Nino

Normally packed with tourists, locals and vendors, Rio's picture-postcard beaches have seen days of steady rain and grey skies, with only a few die-hard visitors braving the seaside promenade with ponchos and umbrellas.

"We're looking for museums ... that's our only option. And drinking coffee all along the way in Copacabana and Ipanema," joked Flo van Raalte, a 23-year-old Dutch tourist.

The city government says its "Alerta Rio" system recorded the highest volume of rainfall in September since measuring began in 1997.

"There has been a drop in activity" in the city "and also a slight decline in tourism. Ultimately, it has had an impact," Brian Silva, a 23-year-old restaurant manager on Copacabana Beach, told AFP.

"But it's still Rio, the most famous seafront in the world."

Experts say the exceptional rainfall, which is also affecting other cities in the southeast, is due to a combination of climatic factors such as El Nino, which this year could become one of the most intense ever recorded.

Meteorologist Estael Sias explained that some Brazilian states were also being hit by cold air masses coming from Antarctica.

"El Nino has fostered these extreme episodes" and serves as the backdrop for the rainfall, the expert told AFP.

Last week the National Institute of Meteorology recorded exceptional weather events in some regions of Brazil, including lightning strikes, strong winds, tornadoes, and hail.

The agency also reported record September rainfall for Sao Paulo, which is exacerbating already-epic traffic jams in Latin America's largest city.

The weather "is horrible. It hasn't stopped raining a single day. All of September was just rain and more rain. I've never experienced anything like this," said Sao Paulo saleswoman Tamires Marina, 33.

Brazil has experienced extreme weather events in recent years, such as floods and droughts, which experts attribute to global warming.

El Nino is a natural climate variation that warms surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, bringing worldwide changes in wind and rain patterns.

This year's El Nino -- projected to be the strongest on record -- could kill hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, fueling disease and food insecurity, according to estimates by scientists and the UN.

S.AbuJamous--SF-PST