The 1973 Flores cyclone was the deadliest known

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depen ...

in the Southern Hemisphere, having killed 1,653 people in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

in April 1973. The cyclone formed in the

Banda Sea The Banda Sea ( id, Laut Banda, pt, Mar de Banda, tet, Tasi Banda) is one of four seas that surround the Maluku Islands of Indonesia, connected to the Pacific Ocean, but surrounded by hundreds of islands, including Timor, as well as the Halma ...

on 26 April as a tropical low. It intensified as it moved in a west-southwest direction, before shifting to the south. On 29 April, the cyclone struck the north coast of the island of Flores, dissipating the next day. The cyclone killed 1,500 fishermen on

Palu'e Palu'e Island (often referred to as ''Palu Island'') is located north of Flores Island in the Flores Sea. It is part of Lesser Sunda Islands. Palu'e island is under the administrative region of Sikka regency of East Nusa Tenggara province, In ...

island. The cyclone dropped heavy rainfall across Flores, causing deadly flash flooding that damaged buildings and roads.

Meteorological history

On 26 April, a tropical low formed in the

in the waters of eastern

. According to Australia's

Bureau of Meteorology The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM or BoM) is an executive agency of the Australian Government responsible for providing weather services to Australia and surrounding areas. It was established in 1906 under the Meteorology Act, and brought together ...

BoM, the low moved to the west-southwest and intensified, although this was based on a later analysis. As the storm was outside of the agency's jurisdiction, the BoM did not issue warnings on the system at the time. The low attained gale-force winds late on 27 April as it moved into the

Flores Sea The Flores Sea covers of water in Indonesia. The sea is bounded on the north by the island of Celebes and on the south by Sunda Islands of Flores and Sumbawa. Geography The seas that border the Flores Sea are the Bali Sea (to the west), Java ...

. Late the next day, the storm turned southwestward. The BoM estimated that the storm reached peak intensity early on 29 April, assessing it as a Category 3 on the

Australian tropical cyclone intensity scale Tropical cyclones are ranked on one of five tropical cyclone intensity scales, according to their maximum sustained winds and which tropical cyclone basins they are located in. Only a few scales of classifications are used officially by the mete ...

, with

maximum sustained wind The maximum sustained wind associated with a tropical cyclone is a common indicator of the intensity of the storm. Within a mature tropical cyclone, it is found within the eyewall at a distance defined as the radius of maximum wind, or RMW. Unl ...

s of 150 km/h (90 mph). While near peak intensity, the small tropical cyclone had eye embedded within a

central dense overcast The central dense overcast, or CDO, of a tropical cyclone or strong subtropical cyclone is the large central area of thunderstorms surrounding its circulation center, caused by the formation of its eyewall. It can be round, angular, oval, or irr ...

, 295 km (185 mi) in diameter. The cyclone made

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

on the northern coast of the Indonesian island of Flores. After crossing the island, the cyclone dissipated on 30 April near Flores' southern coast.

Impact

In the Flores Sea, the cyclone capsized a 500-ton freighter ''O Arbiru'', based out of

Portuguese Timor Portuguese Timor ( pt, Timor Português) was a colonial possession of Portugal that existed between 1702 and 1975. During most of this period, Portugal shared the island of Timor with the Dutch East Indies. The first Europeans to arrive in the ...

, which was delivering a rice shipment from

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

. Of the crew of 24 people, only one person survived. On

island alone, the cyclone killed 1,500 fishermen. News of the disaster in Flores took a month to reach authorities in the capital, Jakarta, due to lack of communications and the remoteness of the island. Across the region, the cyclone killed 1,653 people, making it the deadliest tropical cyclone recorded in the Southern Hemisphere. The storm lashed the coast with a storm surge, which newspapers described as a "tidal wave". In

Ngada Regency Ngada Regency is one of the regencies on the island of Flores, East Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia. It is bordered by East Manggarai Regency to the west and Nagekeo Regency to the east, with the Flores Sea to the north and the Sawu Sea to t ...

, high waves drowned 24 people. Another 10 people were killed in

Manggarai Regency Manggarai Regency is a regency in East Nusa Tenggara province of Indonesia, situated on the island of Flores. Established in 1958 the regency was reduced in size and population by the separation of Manggarai Barat regency in 2003 and of Manggara ...

. For three days, the storm dropped heavy rainfall across Flores, which produced deadly flash flooding that washed away rice fields, livestock, and entire homes. The cyclone wrecked schools, homes, dams, and bridges. The storm also wrecked government buildings, with heavy damage reported in the regional capital of Ende. After the floods, the Indonesian government constructed the Sutami Weir, which was finished in 1975. The

weir A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...

controlled the water flow on the island and helped irrigate of rice paddy fields.

References

External links

More information about the shipwreck
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flores 1972–73 Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone season 1973 in Indonesia 1973 natural disasters Tropical cyclones in Indonesia Flores Island (Indonesia)

Meteorological history

Impact

See also

References

External links