Cyclone Idai

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Intense Tropical Cyclone Idai
Intense Tropical Cyclone ( MFR )
Category 3 cyclone ( SSHWS )
Cyclone Idai at its first peak in the Mozambique Strait on March 11th
Cyclone Idai at its first peak in the Mozambique Strait on March 11th
Emergence 4th March 2019
resolution 15th March 2019
Peak wind
speed
195  km / h (120  mph ) (10 minutes sustained)
205  km / h (125  mph ) (sustained for 1 minute)
Lowest air pressure 940  hPa ( mbar )
dead ≥ 1000
Property damage $ 2,000 million (2019)
Affected
areas 		Mozambique , Malawi , Madagascar , Zimbabwe
Season overview:
cyclone season in the Südwestindik 2018–2019

Cyclone Idai is the eleventh tropical storm and seventh cyclone of the cyclone season in the 2018–2019 Southwest Indies . Already as a tropical depression over land, the storm caused severe flooding in Malawi , killing 60 people, and in Mozambique . Idai moved across the Strait of Mozambique and intensified in the process. The storm hit the coast of Madagascar , then abruptly changed its trajectory again and crossed the Mozambique Strait in a south-westerly direction. The cyclone intensified further and reached its peak with a minimum central air pressure of 940  hPa and ten-minute wind speeds of 195 km / h. When it landed - for example in the area of ​​the half-million city of Beira - Idai was the strongest cyclone since Jokwe in 2008 , which hit Mozambique.

Several million people were affected by the effects of the cyclone, especially in Mozambique and Zimbabwe . There were more than 1,000 fatalities. This makes cyclone Idai, along with two unnamed cyclones from 1892 and 1973, one of the three most deadly tropical cyclones in the southern hemisphere since reliable weather observations began.

Storm course

Cyclone Idai Railway

On March 4, the Météo-France office in Réunion (MFR), as the responsible Center météorologique régional spécialisé , discovered that a tropical depression had formed off the coast of Mozambique, which was then named Tropical Depression 11 . The Depression slowly moved westward and crossed the coast of Mozambique a few hours later on the same day. The Depression was able to maintain its status as a tropical depression throughout its dwell over mainland Africa. Shortly after reaching the mainland, the system turned to a northern track. Over the next few days, the depression looped near the Malawi-Mozambique border before moving east and back to the open waters of the Mozambique Strait. Above water again, MFR upgraded the system to a tropical storm on March 9 at 00:00  UTC , and the Direction Générale de la Météorologie de Madagascar named Idai after the convection had clearly organized itself and band structures had formed. It was around this time that the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) issued its first warning about the system, classifying it as Tropical Cyclone 18S . Idai began to intensify rapidly over the warm water in the street and reached cyclone status before 6:00 p.m. UTC. In addition, the strengthening of a subtropical ridge in the southwest and a weakening of the innertropical convergence zone led to an increase in the speed of the migration. The JTWC upgraded the cyclone to Category 1 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale at the time .

According to the MFR, Idai reached its initial peak on March 11 at around 12 p.m. UTC with continuous ten-minute wind speeds of 175 km / h. The internal structure of the cyclone had improved and one eye could be seen in infrared images. At the time, the JTWC classified Idai as a Category 3 cyclone based on one-minute wind speeds of 195 km / h. Shortly thereafter, a slowdown set in as Idai began to cycle through new eyewall formation . In addition, the storm abruptly changed its direction of movement and, under the growing influence of the subtropical ridge, turned onto a south-western train path.

At 6:00 a.m. UTC on March 12, Idai had weakened to a cyclone with sustained ten-minute winds of 130 km / h and showed a poorly defined eye because the cyclic eyewall formation was not yet complete. During the following day, Idai's intensity changed very little due to structural changes in the core, but the cyclone took a more westerly trajectory. At 6:00 p.m. UTC on March 13, Idai had formed a large eye and assumed the characteristics of an annular tropical cyclone. Six hours later, Idai peaked with ten-minute wind speeds of 195 km / h and a minimum central air pressure of 940  hPa . At the same time, the JTWC reported that Idai had reached peak intensity and stated the one-minute continuous wind speed of 205 km / h. Shortly thereafter, Idai began to weaken due to lower water surface temperatures and the onset of vertical wind shear as the cyclone approached the coast of Mozambique. On March 15 at 00:00 UTC, Météo-France reported that Idai was crossing the coast near Beira with continuous ten-minute winds of 165 km / h. Shortly afterwards, the JTWC issued its last warning about the cyclone and justified it with the fact that the convection in the eye wall had ceased and the cloud tips had warmed up. Idai weakened rapidly after the landfall; at 06:00 UTC, Météo-France stated that Idai had weakened into an overland depression. Six hours later, Metéo France also issued the final warning on Idai.

Effects

The effects on the countries affected did not manifest themselves until the days after the cyclone had passed. A spokeswoman for the World Meteorological Organization called the event “one of the worst weather-related disasters to ever hit the southern hemisphere”. According to the World Bank , the damage amounts to around two billion US dollars.

Malawi

Satellite view of the border region between Mozambique and Malawi; the flooded areas are marked in red (superimposition of two images from March 2nd and 20th)

The cyclone triggered severe flooding in Malawi and Mozambique as a tropical depression. In Malawi, 60 people were reported dead and 672 others were injured from the effects of the floods. Around 420,000 tons of maize - twelve percent of the harvest expected for April - were lost. Many cultivated areas were devastated. The 2015/2016 drought had already caused major damage to agriculture.

Mozambique

Rainfall from cyclone Idai (after landfall on March 15)
Satellite view of the central region of Mozambique on March 19; the flooded areas are marked in red
Flooded houses in Tete , Mozambique
Overlaid satellite images from March 13th, 19th and 25th; Areas marked in red continued to be flooded on March 25th

In Mozambique, at least 66 people were killed by the tropical depression, around 141,000 residents were therefore affected by the floods. After Idai landed again, the number of Mozambicans affected was estimated at over 1.7 million, and a total of 446 deaths were reported on March 24. On April 2, the number of victims was given as 598 dead and 1,641 injured, on April 10, over 600 deaths were reported.

The situation in the Mozambican port city of Beira remained unclear for a long time because communication links and roads to it were interrupted. Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi spoke of up to 1,000 dead after a visit to the disaster area. According to a news agency, 90 percent of the city of Beira has been destroyed. On March 19, estimates went from around 400,000 homeless, on March 23, a number of 600,000 was given.

According to an IFRC representative, the level of destruction in the city of Beira is enormous. The 530,000 residents of the city and the people in the area are in a largely destroyed environment. This also applies to the streets and communication links, which made the affected areas inaccessible. On March 17th a dam broke due to the prolonged rainfall and destroyed the last functional road to Beira. Other dams are also affected by destruction or are at their upper capacity limit. Due to further heavy rains and overflowing dams, the water levels rose even days after the cyclone passed through. Around 15,000 people were still standing on trees or roofs on March 21, waiting for help. According to the Mozambican Environment Minister Celso Correia, further deaths are to be feared as a result of the consequences of the natural disaster . Around 230,000 houses were destroyed or badly damaged.

In the catchment area of ​​the Búzi River west of Beira, a lake was created in a previously densely populated area, 125 kilometers long, 25 kilometers wide and eleven meters deep. The area around the Pungwe River was also largely flooded.

The first cases of cholera were reported on March 23, 2019 . On March 24th, Beira could be reached by road again for the first time; elsewhere too the water sank slowly. By April 2, the number of confirmed cholera cases had risen to over 1,400, and the next day a vaccination campaign against cholera began, for which 900,000 servings of vaccine were available. On April 12, the number of confirmed cholera cases had risen to around 3,500; around 750,000 people had been vaccinated by then. By April 15, 5897 cases had been reported, but the number of new cases was falling for the first time. In total, there were eight cholera deaths.

Even one year after the hurricane hit, long-term support for around 190,000 people in need is still being asked for.

Zimbabwe

Over 340 deaths were reported in eastern Zimbabwe as of April 10, mainly in the region around the city of Chimanimani and in Chipinge . Houses in the country were torn away and bridges destroyed by the storm. According to Defense Minister Perrance Shiri, the consequences are similar to intense warfare. The washing of roads created sinkholes in them and torn bridges. The greatest destruction was caused by huge flash floods in Chimanimani. Soldiers rescued students and teachers in a school isolated from the weather. The first nationwide rescue attempts by the Zimbabwean military with helicopters were hampered by the persistently bad weather conditions. Among other things, 200 km² of farmland, 48 schools, 95% of the roads and ten road bridges in the affected area were destroyed.

According to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), around 922,000 people in Zimbabwe are dependent on aid. The United Nations puts the financial need for emergency aid at 294 million US dollars.

Energy supply situation in South Africa

The HVDC Cahora Bassa , which guarantees a considerable amount of electricity to be exported to South Africa , was severely damaged by the storm ; several pylons are affected. According to initial estimates by a technician from Electricidade de Moçambique , one of the HVDC pylon had overturned and four or five were slightly damaged. However, the damage could be greater. The inspections are hindered and delayed by destroyed roads and bridges. The direct current supplies from the power station of the Cahora Bassa dam were interrupted as a result of these events and the transformer stations in Apollo near Johannesburg are idle. As a result, the South African grid lacks a feed-in capacity of 1150 megawatts, which Eskom is responsible for also supplying industrial plants in Mozambique. For Eskom, this situation means a short-term challenge, because it was already difficult to compensate for increased electricity consumption.

Worldwide and national reactions

Donations were called for to finance relief efforts. Numerous organizations gave immediate financial aid or provided personnel for rescue operations. A spokesman for the WFP called for donations totaling US $ 120 million to provide for three months to those in need in Mozambique. The United Nations increased this figure to 251 million euros in early April.

The South African Foreign Minister Lindiwe Sisulu called on citizens and companies to provide increased humanitarian aid for victims of the storm in Malawi , Mozambique and Zimbabwe . South Africa sent experts from its armed forces to Mozambique on March 16 to explore possible support measures. Since then, rescue and support measures have been carried out continuously by the South African military.

In Portugal , the former colonial power of Mozambique , the damage caused by the cyclones in Mozambique attracted a lot of attention and sympathy. The country quickly dispatched aid workers from the Portuguese civil defense ( Proteção Civil ), but also from the Portuguese military and police from the GNR , some of whom had already been deployed during the floods in Mozambique in 2000 . On March 21, 2019, Portugal's President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa personally adopted the Portuguese Air Force's first C-130 transport aircraft with u. a. Navy and army soldiers, ten messengers, a medical task force and satellite-based communication units. Further transport flights followed, including a field clinic and personnel from the Portuguese emergency service INEM . In the badly affected district of Búzi near Beira, in particular, food was distributed and water treated first, including a first system that supplies 300 liters of drinking water per hour. After that, the aid was steadily expanded. On March 26, the Portuguese State Secretary for Civil Protection announced during his stay in Beira that the Portuguese aid that had started for Mozambique would not be limited for the time being and would continue for as long as Mozambican municipalities request help and cooperation.

The Indian Navy immediately dispatched three ships to Beira to provide emergency aid. On March 25, the US armed forces also announced that they would be sending ships and helicopters as aid.

The German technical relief organization provided systems for drinking water preparation in Beira. On April 12, the German Development Aid Minister Gerd Müller announced the transfer of 50 million euros for first aid and the reconstruction of the infrastructure in the three affected countries. The corresponding private donation volume in Germany at the same time amounted to more than 17 million euros.

East Timor donated one million US dollars in financial aid to Mozambique.

The disaster area is also being supported within Mozambique. 1500 tons of medical aids were brought from the Maputo area to the Beira area.

A two-day international donor conference began on May 31, 2019. Mozambique estimated the damage from cyclones Idai and cyclone Kenneth , which hit the country a few weeks later, at a total of 3.2 billion US dollars. By the time of the conference, international aid had reached around a third of the aid promised. Aid of 1.2 billion US dollars was pledged at the conference.

Web links

Commons : Zyklon Idai  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Jeff Masters: Africa's Hurricane Katrina: Tropical Cyclone Idai Causes an Extreme Catastrophe ( English ) In: Category 6 (blog) . Wonderground. March 20, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  2. ↑ Tropical Depression 11 Warning 1 ( English , PDF, 64.8 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
  3. ↑ Tropical Depression 11 Warning 2 ( English , PDF, 64.7 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  4. ↑ Le 13/03/2019 a 22h Heures locales La Reunion ( French , PNG) Meteo France La Reunion. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
  5. ↑ Bulletin d'analyse et de prévision cyclonique (Sud-Ouest Ocean India) Tropical dépression 11 numéro 3 ( French , PDF, 66.8 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. March 9, 2019. Archived from the original on March 13, 20119. Retrieved on March 14, 2019.
  6. ↑ Bulletin d'analysis et de prévision cyclonique (Sud-Ouest Ocean India) Tempête tropicale modérée 11 (Idai) numéro 6 ( French , PDF, 66.8 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. March 10, 2019. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved on March 14, 2019.
  7. ^ Tropical Cyclone 18S (Eighteen) Warning 001 ( English ) Naval Meteorology and Oceanographic Command. March 9, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  8. ↑ Bulletin d'analysis et de prévision cyclonique (Sud-Ouest Ocean India) Cyclone tropical 11 (Idai) numéro 9 ( French , PDF, 67.1 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  9. ↑ Tropical Cyclone 18S (Idai) Warning 007 ( English ) Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. March 10, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  10. ↑ Bulletin d'analyse et de prévision cyclonique (Sud-Ouest Ocean India) Cyclone tropical intense 11 (Idai) numéro 12 ( French , PDF, 66.9 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  11. ↑ Tropical Cyclone 18S (Idai) Warning 010 ( English ) Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. March 11, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  12. ↑ Bulletin d'analyse et de prévision cyclonique (Sud-Ouest Ocean India) Cyclone tropical intense 11 (Idai) numéro 13 ( French , PDF, 67.2 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. Archived from the original on March 2019. Retrieved on March 14, 2019.
  13. ↑ Tropical cyclone forecast warning (South-West Indian Ocean) Cyclone Tropical cylone 11 (Idai) warning number 15 ( English , PDF, 66.0 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. March 12, 2019. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  14. ↑ Tropical cyclone forecast warning (South-West Indian Ocean) Cyclone Tropical cylone 11 (Idai) warning number 18 ( English ) Meteo France La Reunion. March 13, 2019. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved March 2019.
  15. ↑ Tropical Cyclone Forecast Warning (South-West Indian Ocean) Intense Tropical Cyclone 11 (Idai) Warning Number 21 ( English , PDF, 66.5 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. March 13, 2019. Archived from the original on March 13, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  16. ↑ Tropical Cyclone Forecast Warning (South-West Indian Ocean) Intense Tropical Cyclone 11 (Idai) Warning Number 22 ( English , PDF, 66.2 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. March 13, 2019. Archived from the original on March 13, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  17. ↑ Idai Trackfile ( English ) Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. March 15, 2019. Archived from the original on March 15, 2019. Retrieved on March 16, 2019.
  18. ↑ Tropical Cyclone 18S (Idai) Warning 023 ( English ) In: Joint Typhoon Warning Center . Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. March 14, 2019. Archived from the original on March 15, 2019. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
  19. ↑ Intense Tropical Cyclone Idai Warning 26 ( English , PDF, 65.6 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. March 15, 2019. Archived from the original on March 15, 2019. Retrieved on March 16, 2019.
  20. ↑ Tropical Cyclone 18S (Idai) Warning 024 ( English ) In: Joint Typhoon Warning Center . Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. March 15, 2019. Archived from the original on March 15, 2019. Retrieved on March 16, 2019.
  21. ↑ Overland Depression 11 (Ex-Idai) Warning 27 ( English , PDF, 63.8 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. March 15, 2019. Archived from the original on March 16, 2019. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
  22. ↑ Overland Depression 11 (Ex-Idai) Warning 28 ( English , PDF, 63.8 kB) Meteo France La Reunion. March 15, 2019. Archived from the original on March 16, 2019. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
  23. ↑ Mozambique rescue efforts intensify as full scale of Idai tragedy unfolds. In: Zitamar. March 20, 2019, Retrieved March 20, 2019 (UK English).
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  28. ^ Floods kill 66 in Mozambique (English) , Gulf Times . March 13, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019. 
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  41. ^ Mozambique: Helpers report the first cholera and malaria in Mozambique. Zeit Online from March 23, 2019, accessed on March 24, 2019
  42. ↑ "I know Beira as a very lively city, but everything is gray now." Sueddeutsche.de from March 28, 2019, accessed on March 28, 2019
  43. ↑ Tsvanirayi Mukwazhi: Mozambique cholera cases now above 1,400; vaccines arrive. apnews.com on April 2, 2019, accessed April 2, 2019
  44. ↑ Cyclone Idai / Mozambique: UNICEF and WHO start vaccinations against cholera. unicef.de from April 3, 2019, accessed on April 4, 2019
  45. ↑ Mozambique: around 750,000 people vaccinated against cholera. rp-online.de of April 9, 2019, accessed on April 9, 2019
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  52. ↑ MyBroadband: Warning - Eskom's problems much bigger than what you are told . News from March 17, 2019 on www.mybroadband.co.za (English)
  53. ↑ NewsCentral Media: Mozambique power lines may take weeks to fix . News from March 20, 2019 on www.techcentral.co.za (English)
  54. ↑ Arimando Domingos: After the storm. taz.de from March 23, 2019, accessed on March 23, 2019
  55. ^ Parliament of the Republic of South Africa: Committee on IR Calls for Assistance to Tropical Cyclone Idai Victims . Statement from March 19, 2019 on www.parliament.gov.za (English)
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  57. ↑ Ajuda portuguesa a caminho de Moçambique - "Portuguese aid on the way to Mozambique" , article from March 21, 2019 of the news portal Cidade.iol , accessed on March 29, 2019
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