ASUNCIÓN, Paraguay -- A powerful drought in the Amazon rainforest led on Monday to the lowest water levels on the Paraguay River in more than a century, disrupting commerce on the major waterway, creating hazards for local transport and offering a grim warning for other parts of the world.

Paraguay's meteorological agency reported that water levels on the Paraguay River, a vital waterway for the region's economy , have fallen to their lowest point in 120 years, reaching 89 centimeters (35 inches) below the benchmark at the port of Asunción, the capital.

The previous record-breaking decline occurred just three years ago, in October 2021. This event, experts say, highlights how droughts that deplete the region's waterways are becoming more frequent and severe.

The most immediate impact is being felt in landlocked Paraguay, one of the world's leading exporters of agricultural commodities. This nation relies heavily on the river for transporting 80% of its international trade.

The leader of Paraguay's fishing union stated on Monday that the drop in water levels has left 1,600 fishermen unemployed. On Monday, numerous boats that typically navigate the waterway were stranded on the parched banks of sand.

“I'm stranded,” said Fermín Giménez, a sailor who found himself trapped on Monday when the river suddenly dried up underneath his small barge. “It's a catastrophe.”

Originating in Brazil, the Paraguay-Paraná waterway extends for 3,400 kilometers (about 2,110 miles) through Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia, eventually reaching the open seas. This makes the region a critical transport hub for grain, corn, soy and other agricultural products.

In recent days, drought-related disruptions have spread from Paraguay to neighboring countries. According to Paraguay's main shipping association, more than half of the river's shipping capacity has been halted or is facing delays due to the drought. The association states that only a limited amount of cargo can be loaded onto ships without the risk of getting stuck in the shallower sections of the river.

This has created costly problems for countries like Brazil, which exports iron ore along the river, and Bolivia, which has been forced to reroute crucial fuel shipments via a slower overland route. Paraguay, which depends on the river for electricity generation, also faces the potential for disruptions in supply, said Raúl Valdez, president of Paraguay's Center of River and Maritime Shipowners.

With no rainfall expected in the coming weeks, industry representatives stated that there is no immediate relief in sight. They foresee losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

“Our primary question is, will this now become a recurring pattern? No one anticipates a quick rebound,” Valdez said. “It’s a significant concern for the entire region.”

Experts stated that the drying of the Paraguay River — as with other rivers from Colorado to France to Brazil's Amazon — reflects how population growth, climate change, and deforestation have increasingly combined with weak governance and inefficient irrigation practices to transform landscapes, disrupting delicate ecosystems and forcing numerous communities to seek fresh water.

“Across the globe, we are seeing increases in droughts; they are lasting longer, are more intense, more frequent, and harder to recover from,” said Rachael McDonnell, deputy director-general for research at the International Water Management Institute.

As rainfall becomes more unpredictable and the warming climate intensifies the cycles of flood and drought, McDonnell said, “we've lost the system's ability to adapt.”

An extreme drought — largely connected to climate change — has punished the Amazon in recent years, worsening in 2024 and helping fuel wildfires now raging in the forests along Paraguay’s northeast border with Brazil, where residents said Monday the air smelled of acrid smoke, and in parts of Bolivia, where the government has declared a national emergency.

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DeBre reported from Montevideo, Uruguay.