1999 Pakistan cyclone
Encyclopedia
The 1999 Pakistan cyclone (Joint Typhoon Warning Center
Joint Typhoon Warning Center
The Joint Typhoon Warning Center is a joint United States Navy – United States Air Force task force located at the Naval Maritime Forecast Center in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii...

 designation: 02A; India Meteorological Department
India Meteorological Department
The India Meteorological Department , also referred to as the Met Office, is an agency of the Ministry of Earth Sciences of the Government of India. It is the principal agency responsible for meteorological observations, weather forecasting and seismology...

 designation: ARB 01) was a deadly tropical cyclone
Tropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rain. Tropical cyclones strengthen when water evaporated from the ocean is released as the saturated air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor...

 that brought further devastation to a region struck by a powerful storm nearly a year earlier.

Meteorological history

An area of disturbed weather in the Arabian Sea
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...

 was monitored in early May for possible development. Over the next two weeks, strong convection would develop before sunrise but dissipate by sunset. By May 16, the convection had become constant and a TCFA was issued at 0100Z. The low became a tropical storm by 0900Z. Tropical Storm 02A intensified as it moved to the northwest and reached cyclone status on May 17 at 0600Z. At that time, a mid-latitude trough weakened the subtropical ridge, allowing 02A to curve into Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

. 02A continued to intensify and by May 19, it had reached its peak of 125 mph (205 km/h), just below Category four status on the SSHS. 02A made landfall on May 20 near Karachi, Pakistan at peak intensity. The storm began to dissipate as it continued inland over the Indus River Valley on May 21 and completely dissipated the next day.

India

In India, officials evacuated more than 50,000 from costal towns and cities as a precaution. However, the powerful cyclone caused relatively little damage during its passage. Moderate rainfall was recorded across Gujarat and only one person was killed. Some areas were cut off from the surrounding region after strong winds, estimated to have been between 120 and 150 km/h (74.6 and 93.2 mph) downed power lines.

Pakistan

Upon striking Pakistan, officials feared the worst, with memories of the deadly 1998 Gujarat cyclone
1998 Gujarat cyclone
The 1998 Gujarat cyclone was a deadly tropical cyclone that killed at least 10,000 people in India.-Meteorological history:...

 fresh in their minds. Reports released hours after the storm moved inland stated that at least 700 people were feared to be dead and at least 3,500 were thought to be missing. Hundreds of villages along the coastline were inundated by the cyclone's large storm surge
Storm surge
A storm surge is an offshore rise of water associated with a low pressure weather system, typically tropical cyclones and strong extratropical cyclones. Storm surges are caused primarily by high winds pushing on the ocean's surface. The wind causes the water to pile up higher than the ordinary sea...

 and flooding rains. High winds downed power lines throughout the region, severing communication with many affected cities. In Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...

 44 mph winds lashed the city with heavy downpour. At least 70% of the rice crop was estimated to have been lost due to the cyclone. Near the storm's center, wind gusts were estimated to have reached 275 km/h (170.9 mph).

By May 23, officials in Pakistan recovered 200 bodies; 50 were found across islands of the mainland and 150 were in the Badin District
Badin District
Badin District a district in the Sindh province of Pakistan. The total area of the district is 6,726 square kilometres, according to the 1998 census of Pakistan, it had a population of 1,136,636 of which 16.42% were urban...

. During a rescue attempt, 11 Pakistani soldiers were washed away in a swift current. None of the soldiers are believed to have survived the incident.Throughout the country, damage was estimated to have exceeded $6 million. By May 24, 400 bodies had been recovered but at least 6,000 more were known to be missing and believed dead. Many of these people are believed to have been swept out to sea.

Following the storm's destructive landfall, hundreds of soldiers from the Pakistan army were deployed to the region. They assisted in search and rescue operations as well as relocating survivors to shelters. According to the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...

, the Government of Pakistan
Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan is a federal parliamentary system, with an indirectly-elected President as the Head of State and Commander in Chief of the Pakistani Armed Forces, and an indirectly-elected Prime Minister as the Head of Government. The President’s appointment and term are...

 made no attempts to evacuate residents before the cyclone made landfall, likely resulting in the large number of fatalities. At least $1 million in relief funds was to be supplied by the government.

Records

Upon reaching its peak intensity, the storm became the most intense cyclone ever recorded in the Arabian Sea
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...

 since records began. It surpassed the record set just a year earlier by Very Severe Cyclonic Storm ARB 02
1998 Gujarat cyclone
The 1998 Gujarat cyclone was a deadly tropical cyclone that killed at least 10,000 people in India.-Meteorological history:...

 which attained winds of 160 km/h (105 mph 3-minute sustained) and a minimum pressure of 958 mbar (hPa; 28.29 inHg). Since then, the storm has been surpassed as the strongest in the region. In June 2007, Cyclone Gonu
Cyclone Gonu
Cyclone Gonu is the strongest tropical cyclone on record in the Arabian Sea, and is also the strongest named cyclone in the northern Indian Ocean...

 became the first Category 5 equivalent storm ever recorded in the area. Additionally, the JTWC estimated that another storm, Cyclone Phet
Cyclone Phet
Cyclone Phet was the third named cyclone of the 2010 North Indian Ocean cyclone season. Phet developed from a low pressure area in the Arabian Sea that organized into a tropical cyclone on May 31...

 in 2010, attained higher sustained winds than ARB 01 in 1999; however, the IMD does not support this.

See also

  • 1999 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
    1999 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
    The 1999 North Indian Ocean cyclone season was an event in the annual cycle of tropical cyclone formation. The North Indian Ocean cyclone season has no official bounds, but cyclones tend to form between April and December, with peaks in May and November...

  • 1998 Gujarat cyclone
    1998 Gujarat cyclone
    The 1998 Gujarat cyclone was a deadly tropical cyclone that killed at least 10,000 people in India.-Meteorological history:...

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