Paraguay's aeromedical transfer system has reached a significant milestone, with more than 200 critical patients transported by air over the last three years. According to the Ministry of Public Health, the service, which involves coordination between several institutions, recorded 75 flights in 2024, 127 in 2025, and has already carried out 78 transfers in 2026. These operations, which use planes and the presidential helicopter, depart from remote departments like Amambay, Alto Paraguay, and Boquerón, handling cases such as multiple trauma, strokes, and high-risk pregnancies.
Meanwhile, the country is preparing for a sudden change in weather. The Directorate of Meteorology and Hydrology (DMH) has issued alerts for moderate to strong storms, with wind gusts and possible hail, which would affect various departments, including Asunción and Central, on Thursday afternoon and night. The director of the institution, Eduardo Mingo, explained that this storm system is the precursor to the arrival of a cold front.
According to Mingo, the weather phenomenon is linked to an extratropical cyclone active in the Southern Cone, whose most severe effects are concentrated in southern Brazil and Uruguay. What reaches Paraguay are the winds and scattered storms associated with the arrival of the cold air mass. The forecast is that the cold front will enter through the south of the country between 9 PM and 10 PM on Thursday, bringing southerly winds that could exceed 70 km/h.
The period of storms is expected to dissipate on Friday morning, giving way to a weekend marked by a sharp drop in temperatures. Minimums are expected to reach between 10°C and 13°C in Asunción, with the cold persisting until next Thursday, August 13. The sequence of severe weather events and the sudden cold wave highlight the importance of emergency response systems, like the aeromedical transfer service, to ensure assistance to the population in all regions.