Cyclone Ingrid - Meteorological History

Meteorological History

Ingrid developed in the Coral Sea on 3 March 2005. Although its sustained winds were high enough to be classified as a Category 4 storm, it diminished to Category 3 strength on 9 March as it moved west towards the Australian coast. The eye, with very destructive wind gusts up to 220 km/h within a 20 km radius, reached the far northern coast of the Australian state of Queensland between 6 am and 9 am on 10 March 2005 AEST, and hit the Cape York Peninsula as a Category 2 storm. However, it was downgraded to a Category 1 storm as it crossed the peninsula north of the towns of Coen and Lockhart River.

After passing the town of Weipa, Ingrid gained strength once again as it moved out across the Gulf of Carpentaria towards the Northern Territory. It struck the town of Nhulunbuy as a Category 4 storm. It crossed the Cobourg Peninsula in the early hours of 13 March, heading west. Ingrid crossed the Tiwi Islands as a Category 3 storm, and moved west into the Timor Sea. Winds were in excess of 200 km/h.

On 15 March Ingrid approached the north coast of the Kimberley region of Western Australia as a Category 4 storm, and made landfall near Kalumburu shortly afterwards. It quickly weakened as it moved inland, and soon completely dissipated.

(Note: The storm categories above are as defined by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, and differ from those used in the United States.)