Amazon River's massive scale and flow pose significant dangers

The Amazon River is characterized by its massive scale and extreme hydrological power, making it a hazardous environment for swimming. Its basin covers approximately 6.915 million km², accounting for one-quarter of the South American continent. The river system is composed of tens of thousands of tributaries, including seven branches longer than 1,600 km and a longest branch exceeding 3,200 km.

In terms of water volume, the river's average discharge is roughly 220,000 m³/s, which is nearly seven times the flow of the Yangtze River. At its peak, the discharge can reach 280,000 m³/s. Each year, the Amazon pours 6.6 trillion m³ of water into the Atlantic Ocean, a volume so significant that it can freshen seawater up to 160 km away from the river mouth. Beyond its physical dimensions, the presence of dangerous biological life within its murky waters contributes to the river being treated as a forbidden zone by many local residents.