2011-12 South Atlantic hurricane season

The 2011-12 South Atlantic hurricane season was an event in the annual cycle of global tropical cyclone formation. It started with the formation of Tropical Depression Aldonça on November 7, 2011, and ended with the dissipation of Hurricane Grande on April 2, 2012. It saw the greatest amount of activity ever recorded in the South Atlantic basin, with 10 depressions, 7 named storms, 4 hurricanes, and 2 major hurricanes forming, though reliable records barely go back two decades, so it remains unconfirmed as to if this really was the most active the South Atlantic has ever been.

Of note was Category 5 Hurricane Fonte, whose maximum sustained winds reached a temporarily record-breaking 195 mph, and it's central pressure spiraled to another regional record-breaker, 880 mbar. But Fonte wasn't the only memorable storm of this season. Hurricane Estado, a 150 mph Category 4, slammed ashore in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on March 19, killing nearly four thousand total, and causing nearly $9 billion in damage to the city, though its iconic Christ the Redeemer statue remained intact, and scarred by flying debris.