Cyclone Kalunde

Intense Tropical Cyclone Kalunde

Intense tropical cyclone (SWIO scale)
Category 5 (Saffir–Simpson scale)
Kalunde at peak intensity on March 8
Formed	March 3, 2003
Dissipated	March 17, 2003
Highest winds	10-minute sustained: 215 km/h (130 mph) 1-minute sustained: 260 km/h (160 mph)
Lowest pressure	910 hPa (mbar); 26.87 inHg
Damage	$3.15 million (2003 USD)
Areas affected	Rodrigues
Part of the 2002–03 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season

Intense Tropical Cyclone Kalunde was the strongest storm of the 2002–03 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season. The eleventh named storm and sixth cyclone of the season, Kalunde formed on March 4 from an area of disturbed weather east-southeast of Diego Garcia. The storm steadily strengthened and attained severe tropical storm intensity on March 6. After starting a phase of rapid deepening, Kalunde attained cyclone intensity the next day. Kalunde attained its peak intensity on March 8, as an intense tropical cyclone. It maintained its peak strength for a day; shortly thereafter, the system began to weaken. After undergoing an eyewall replacement cycle, the storm brushed Rodrigues. Shortly after doing so, Kalunde weakened into a tropical cyclone and later a severe tropical storm. Two days later, on March 16, the cyclone transitioned into an extratropical cyclone and dissipated the next day.

Cyclone Kalunde brought US$3.15 million in damage to Rodrigues Island. A total of 1,600 homes and 40 boats were damaged. Severe coastal damage took place across the island; many roads were washed out. Power outages also occurred across the island, delaying residents access to information pertaining to Kalunde. About 80 percent of the drinking water was contaminated and the entire food crop was destroyed. However, no deaths were reported.

An area of convection developed on March 3 several hundred miles to the east-southeast of Diego Garcia. That day, Météo-France (MFR) issued the first bulletin on Tropical Disturbance 14 while located 580 mi (930 km) east-southeast of Diego Garcia. In an environment of weak to moderate wind shear, MFR upgraded the system to tropical depression status. Later on March 4, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) for the disturbance as shower activity increased, though it initially concentrated west-southwest of the atmospheric circulation. MFR upgraded the depression to moderate tropical storm status at 0600 UTC on March 5; subsequently, the Meteorological Service of Mauritius assigned the system the name Kalunde. Moving west-northwest, the JTWC issued their first warning on the system. Initially, Kalunde did not become much better organized even though deep convection was still increasing. Cyclone Kalunde steadily intensified over the next couple of days while performing a small clockwise loop. MFR upgraded Kalunde to severe tropical storm status at 1200 UTC on March 6. At 1800 UTC, JTWC reported 1-minute sustained winds of 100 km/h (60 mph). On March 7, Kalunde began to undergo rapid intensification, and at 0600 UTC the MFR upgraded it to a tropical cyclone. At the same time, JTWC also estimated winds of 120 km/h (75 mph), the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale (SSHWS).