RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL: In Brazil, coats and scarves have been brought out too soon as the tropical country’s south faces a record-breaking cold period, posing a threat to both homeless people and crops.

With more than a month until the formal start of winter, the capital Brasilia recorded the coldest temperature in its history on Thursday, with 1.4 degrees Celsius.

The entire southern half of a map of Brazil is coloured orange and labelled “Cold wave (danger)” on the Inmet meteorological agency’s website.

The temperature in Sao Paulo, Latin America’s largest city, was 6.6 degrees Celsius on Wednesday morning, a record for May since 1990. The temperature “felt like” -4 C.

On Wednesday, a 66-year-old homeless man died in Sao Paulo after becoming ill in a food distribution queue. He had spent the night on the street, according to local media.

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Sao Paulo City Hall announced 2,000 more shelter beds this week, bringing the total capacity to almost 17,000 people.

However, there are approximately 32,000 homeless persons in Brazil’s economic capital, roughly a third more than three years ago, before the coronavirus outbreak.

Snow has enchanted tourists in the southern state of Santa Catarina, where temperatures have been below 2 degrees Celsius for several days.

According to Metsul meteorologist Estael Sias, the “atypical cold wave” was caused by Cyclone Yakecan, which hit southern Brazil and Uruguay.

“This cyclone is an exception,” she said, adding that it “definitely fits in with extreme events associated to climate change.”

The cold snap and frost have “potential ramifications” for agriculture in one of the world’s largest food producers, according to Inmet.