1999 Orissa Cyclone - Meteorological History

Meteorological History

A tropical disturbance developed in the South China Sea in mid-to-late October. It tracked westward and organized itself enough to have the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) issue a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) on October 23. But the system failed to organize itself any further in the Pacific, and the TCFA was cancelled. When the system reached the Andaman Sea on October 25, another TCFA was issued. Shortly after, the convective area consolidated, and it became Tropical Depression 5B on October 25 over the Malay Peninsula. The depression tracked northwestward under the influence of the Subtropical ridge to its north. Warm water temperatures and favorable upper level winds allowed further strengthening, and it became Tropical Storm 5B on October 26, 210 miles (345 km) south-southwest of Yangon, Myanmar.

The storm passed to the south of Myanmar and continued to strengthen, and intensified to a cyclone on the 27th in the open Bay of Bengal. On October 28, the cyclone rapidly intensified to a peak of 160 mph (260 km/h) winds, the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane. The system was the first storm to be given the new meteorological label "super cyclonic storm" by the IMD.

Just prior to its Indian landfall, the cyclone weakened slightly to a 155 mph (250 km/h) cyclone with an estimated minimum central pressure of <912 mbar. On October 29, the cyclone hit the Indian state of Orissa near the city of Bhubaneswar. The ridge to the north blocked further inland movement, and the cyclone stalled about 30 miles (50 km) inland of the ocean. It slowly weakened, maintaining tropical storm strength as it drifted southward. The cyclone re-emerged into the Bay of Bengal on October 31, and dissipated on November 3 over the open waters.