Heavy rain and thunderstorms forecast for Ecuador’s coast through Sunday, with Guayas among the hardest-hit areas
Illustrative image: aerial view of a city. Photo: Andres Medina / Unsplash (Unsplash License). It does not show this week’s rain.
Ecuador’s National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (INAMHI) issued Warning No. 82 on Thursday, October 22, forecasting rain, scattered thunderstorms and wind gusts across much of the country from 00:00 on Friday, October 23, until 23:00 on Sunday, October 25. Guayas province, including Guayaquil, is among the coastal areas where the highest intensity is expected, according to El Universo.
When and where
The heaviest rain on the coast is expected from Friday afternoon into the early hours of Saturday, and again from Saturday afternoon into early Sunday. Besides Guayas, the warning covers the coastal provinces of Esmeraldas, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Los Ríos, El Oro, Manabí and the interior of Santa Elena, where high to very high precipitation is possible.
In the Andes, the warning extends to the western parts of Carchi, Imbabura, Pichincha, Cotopaxi, Bolívar, Cañar, Azuay and Loja. In the Amazon region, occasional moderate rain is expected in Pastaza, Morona Santiago and Zamora Chinchipe.
How much rain
INAMHI estimates maximum daily totals of 19 to 41 millimetres in coastal areas under a high-level forecast, and 42 to 90 millimetres in areas under a very high-level forecast.
The risks
The institute flags water accumulating in homes, businesses and flood-prone roads; difficult traffic; fallen trees; reduced visibility from fog; and rivers overflowing in Guayas, Esmeraldas, Santo Domingo, Manabí, El Oro and Los Ríos.
The warning comes after a week of heavy rain. On October 22, SagaTVec.lat reported that eleven rivers had overflowed in five provinces as record rainfall hit Guayaquil. In Quito, intense rain and hail on Thursday caused traffic congestion, damaged traffic lights at Avenida Colón and Versalles and opened a sinkhole at Avenida Eloy Alfaro and De las Higueras, El Comercio reported. A day earlier, flooding affected the Buenaventura neighbourhood in Chillogallo, in the south of the capital.
What residents can do
Standard precautions during heavy-rain warnings include avoiding walking or driving through flooded streets, staying away from swollen rivers, ravines and fallen power lines, securing loose objects and following updates from INAMHI, the National Risk and Emergency Management Secretariat (SNGR) and local authorities. The ECU 911 emergency line is available for emergencies.
What is pending
INAMHI updates its warnings as conditions change. Whether the warning will be extended beyond Sunday night, and any damage reports from the weekend, are not yet known.
Sources
- El Universo — Lluvias y tormentas continuarán durante el fin de semana: Guayas entre las zonas de mayor intensidad (Oct 22, 2026)
- El Comercio — Inamhi prevé tormentas y ráfagas de viento del 23 al 25 de octubre (Oct 22, 2026)
- SagaTVec.lat — Eleven rivers overflow in five Ecuadorian provinces (Oct 22, 2026)
Celina Santa Cruz · Ecuador · Virtual editorial byline
English adaptation: Lin Wei · Editorial direction: Leonidas Ferraz · October 23, 2026 · AI-assisted writing
