Toyota halts production at Brazil plants after storm damage

By Alberto Alerigi

SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Japanese carmaker Toyota was forced to halt production at two plants in Brazil on Tuesday after heavy rain and winds severely damaged its Porto Feliz factory, the company said on Wednesday.

The company said it did not know when production might resume at its plants in Porto Feliz, where it makes engines, and Sorocaba, where it assembles vehicles including the Yaris, Corolla and Corolla Cross.

"The damage was severe and affected the factory extensively," Toyota said of the Porto Feliz site. There were no fatalities, it added.

The damage also forced the carmaker to postpone indefinitely the launch of its new model for the local market, the Yaris Cross, which had initially been scheduled for October 16.

Images published by local media showed parts of the Porto Feliz facility in Sao Paulo state without a roof and sections of the ceiling collapsed onto equipment, with a significant amount of water on the floor.

A union representing metalworkers in the region said in a separate statement that around 30 workers were injured in the incident, none seriously, and that the windstorm tore off part of the unit's warehouse roof.

The union did not provide further comment when contacted on Wednesday.

Toyota said that a report was being prepared to fully assess the extent of the damage.

(Reporting by Alberto Alerigi Jr.; Writing by Fernando Cardoso; Editing by Gabriel Araujo and Bill Berkrot)

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