SAO PAULO, Nov 1, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Heavy rains have swollen the famed Iguazu waterfalls on the border between Argentina and Brazil to near decade-high water volumes this week, authorities said, as flooding engulfed one of the site's main tourist walkways.

Storms in the southern Brazilian state of Parana sent the flow of water through the massive falls gushing to 24.2 million liters per second Monday, the second-highest volume on record, officials said.

The flow was more than 16 times the falls' normal level of 1.5 million liters per second.

"It is the highest volume of water in recent years," said Urbia, the company that manages the national park encompassing the falls, a biodiversity hotspot.

The highest water volume on record for the falls was in 2014, when officials registered a flow of 46.3 million liters per second.

Raging brown flood waters could be seen nearly swallowing the park's top attraction, a tourist walkway to the spot known as Devil's Throat, famed for its breathtaking views of the falls.

Officials said the walkway remained closed Tuesday, even as the water level started to recede, to 18.1 million liters per second.

The Iguazu falls are among the largest in the world, with 275 separate waterfalls formed by the Iguazu river.