The 1995–96 Australian region cyclone season was an active Australian

cyclone In meteorology, a cyclone () is a large air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from above (opposite to an anti ...

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

, with

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

experiencing a record number of landfalling intense storms in the

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a glo ...

region. The season produced a total of 19 tropical cyclones, of which 14 developed into named storms and 9 reached severe tropical cyclone status. The strongest of the season was Severe Tropical Cyclone Olivia, which also produced the highest recorded wind gust on record of 408 km/h (253 mph). Though several systems impacted land, the general sparsity of population centres in Australia limits the scale of damage. One person was confirmed to have been killed and cumulative losses were estimated at A$77 million (US$58.5 million).

Systems

ImageSize = width:800 height:200 PlotArea = top:10 bottom:80 right:20 left:20 Legend = columns:3 left:30 top:58 columnwidth:270 AlignBars = early DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/11/1995 till:01/06/1996 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMinor = grid:black unit:month increment:1 start:01/11/1995 Colors = id:canvas value:gray(0.88) id:GP value:red id:TL value:rgb(0.38,0.73,1) legend:Tropical_Low_=_<63_km/h_(<39_mph) id:C1 value:rgb(0,0.98,0.96) legend:Category_1_=_63-87_km/h_(39-54_mph) id:C2 value:rgb(0.80,1,1) legend:Category_2_=_88-142_km/h_(55-74_mph) id:C3 value:rgb(1,1,0.80) legend:Category_3_=_143-158-km/h_(75-98_mph) id:C4 value:rgb(1,0.76,0.25) legend:Category_4_=_159-204_km/h_(99-127_mph) id:C5 value:rgb(1,0.38,0.38) legend:Category_5_=_≥205_km/h_(≥128_mph) Backgroundcolors = canvas:canvas BarData = barset:Hurricane bar:Month PlotData= barset:Hurricane width:10 align:left fontsize:S shift:(4,-4) anchor:till from:16/11/1995 till:19/11/1995 color:C3 text:"Daryl-Agnielle (C3)" from:02/12/1995 till:16/12/1995 color:C1 text:"Emma (C1)" from:06/12/1995 till:13/12/1995 color:C4 text:"Frank (C4)" from:17/12/1995 till:24/12/1995 color:C3 text:"Gertie (C3)" from:04/01/1996 till:07/01/1996 color:C4 text:"Barry (C4)" from:07/01/1996 till:09/01/1996 color:C3 text:"Hubert-Coryna (C3)" from:26/01/1996 till:29/01/1996 color:C3 text:"Celeste (C3)" barset:break from:27/01/1996 till:01/02/1996 color:C1 text:"Isobel (C1)" from:27/01/1996 till:08/02/1996 color:C3 text:"Jacob (C3)" from:05/02/1996 till:10/02/1996 color:C1 text:"12S (C1)" from:08/02/1996 till:11/02/1996 color:TL text:"TL" from:14/02/1996 till:17/02/1996 color:TL text:"TL" from:15/02/1996 till:18/02/1996 color:C1 text:"Dennis (C1)" from:07/03/1996 till:14/03/1996 color:C4 text:"Kristy (C4)" barset:break from:08/03/1996 till:13/03/1996 color:C1 text:"Ethel (C1)" from:06/04/1996 till:12/04/1996 color:C4 text:" Olivia (C4)" from:12/04/1996 till:19/04/1996 color:TL text:"TL" from:30/04/1996 till:06/05/1996 color:C2 text:"Jenna (C2)" from:30/04/1996 till:05/05/1996 color:TL text:"TL" bar:Month width:5 align:center fontsize:S shift:(0,-20) anchor:middle color:canvas from:01/11/1995 till:01/12/1995 text:November from:01/12/1995 till:01/01/1996 text:December from:01/01/1996 till:01/02/1996 text:January from:01/02/1996 till:01/03/1996 text:February from:01/03/1996 till:01/04/1996 text:March from:01/04/1996 till:01/05/1996 text:April from:01/05/1996 till:01/06/1996 text:May TextData = pos:(569,23) text:"(For further details, please see" pos:(713,23) text:"

scales Scale or scales may refer to: Mathematics * Scale (descriptive set theory), an object defined on a set of points * Scale (ratio), the ratio of a linear dimension of a model to the corresponding dimension of the original * Scale factor, a number w ...

Severe Tropical Cyclone Daryl-Agnielle

The first storm of the year and most intense across the Southern Hemisphere during the 1995–96 seasons, Cyclone Daryl was first identified several hundred kilometres west of

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

on 16 November. Initially tracking south-eastward, the system gradually attained gale-force winds as it neared the

Cocos Islands ) , anthem = "''Advance Australia Fair''" , song_type = , song = , image_map = Australia on the globe (Cocos (Keeling) Islands special) (Southeast Asia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands , map_caption = ...

late on 17 November. Squally conditions and heavy rain impacted the islands but no damage took place. Low

wind shear Wind shear (or windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or horizontal ...

allowed for further strengthening; a mid-level

ridge A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...

south of the system forced Daryl to turn towards the west. Early on 19 November, the storm intensified into a severe tropical cyclone and attained winds of 130 km/h (80 mph) before crossing

90°E The meridian 90° east of Prime Meridian, Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Asia, the Indian Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole. It is the border between two trop ...

and entering the Mauritius area of responsibility. Upon crossing this border, Daryl was assigned a second name, Agnielle, by Mauritius. Over the following days, the system further deepened, peaking in strength as a Category 3 on the Australian intensity scale with 205 km/h (125 mph) and a

barometric pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1013.25 millibars, 7 ...

of 915 hPa (mbar; 27.02 inHg). Steady weakening took place due to markedly stronger wind shear. Cyclone Daryl-Agnielle was last noted as a weak low pressure center on 25 November over the open waters of the southern Indian Ocean.

Tropical Cyclone Emma

Emma stayed well off the Australian coast in the Indian Ocean. It spent most of its duration as a tropical low.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Frank

It formed on 6 December 1995, and was the first cyclone to form in northwest coast of Australia during the 95/96 season. Cyclone Frank brought heavy winds and rains to the

Pilbara coast The Pilbara Coast is the coastline of Western Australia's Pilbara region. It is often referred to as the North West Coast of Western Australia. It is a complex array of river mouths, ports, peninsulas, and islands. Geography North West Cap ...

. Frank was one of four cyclones to strike in that area.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Gertie

A tropical low formed in the Timor Sea on 16 December and tracked west-southwest as it deepened slowly. The low crossed into the WA region on 17 December and was named Gertie on the afternoon of the 18th. The cyclone then moved towards the south-southwest during the 19th but slowed to be almost stationary during the late afternoon and evening of that day. Gertie then began to move south, then southeastwards, crossing the coast near

Mandora Station Mandora Station is a cattle station on the Western Australia coast south of Broome, located in the Shire of Broome. In earlier years it has also been a sheep station. It maintains a weather station and is noted for the Mandora Marsh wetlan ...

on 20 December. Gertie then passed to the northeast of Telfer producing near gale-force winds and heavy rain before dissipating on the 21st. The storm did only minor damage.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Barry

Barry formed in the Gulf of Carpentaria on 4 January, reaching a maximum intensity of Category 3 (Australian scale) before crossing the coast between

Karumba Karumba is a town and a coastal Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Shire of Carpentaria, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Karumba had a population of 531 people. Geography Karumba is in the Gulf Country region o ...

and

Kowanyama Kowanyama is a town and coastal locality in the Aboriginal Shire of Kowanyama, Queensland, Australia. It is the site of the former Mitchell River Mission, founded in 1916, after the nearby Trubanamen Mission (established not far away on Topsy ...

two days later. Heavy rains caused severe flooding across the southern Cape York Peninsula, however there were no deaths reported.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Hubert-Coryna

Hubert stayed well off the Australian coast in the Indian Ocean from 8 to 12 January 1996.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Celeste

Celeste formed in the Coral Sea on 26 January 1996, and rapidly intensified into a Category 3 severe tropical cyclone (Australian scale), in part due to its position between equatorial and subtropical upper wind outflow channels. While intensifying it approached the northeastern Australian coast, with its centre coming within to the north of

Bowen, Queensland Bowen is a coastal town and locality in the Whitsunday Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Bowen had a population of 10,377 people. The locality contains two other towns: * Heronvale () * Merinda (). The Abbot Point coal s ...

on 27 January. After dumping heavy rain on the region, Celeste moved back out to sea. As it did, the cyclone passed to the north of the

Whitsunday Islands The Whitsunday Islands are 74 continental islands of various sizes off the central coast of Queensland, Australia, north of Brisbane. The northernmost of the islands are off the coast by the town of Bowen, while the southernmost islands are ...

while reaching peak intensity. Subsequently it quickly weakened.

Tropical Cyclone Isobel

Isobel only lasted from 27 January 1996 to 1 February in the Timor Sea and did not pass close to any land.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Jacob

TC Jacob formed on 1 February 1996 from a monsoonal low that moved across the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

and the

Kimberley region of Western Australia The Kimberley is the northernmost of the nine regions of Western Australia. It is bordered on the west by the Indian Ocean, on the north by the Timor Sea, on the south by the Great Sandy and Tanami deserts in the region of the Pilbara, an ...

before tracking over the

Bonaparte Gulf Joseph Bonaparte Gulf is a large body of water off the coast of the Northern Territory and Western Australia and part of the Timor Sea. It was named after Joseph Bonaparte, brother of Napoleon and King of Naples (1806-1808) and then Spain (1808 ...

. It closely followed the Western Australian coast and developed cyclone characteristics near Adele Island. Jacob continued to intensify and moved west-southwestwards, roughly parallel to the

. At peak intensity Jacob was a Category 3 storm with wind gusts near the centre estimated to be 200 kilometres per hour. The Kimberley and Pilbara coastal areas received heavy rains as the cyclone passed offshore. Only minor damage occurred and there were no deaths.

Tropical Storm 12S

A weak storm formed near the edge of the Bureau's area of responsibility in early February. Only the JTWC classified it as a tropical cyclone, reporting peak winds of 65 km/h (40 mph).

Tropical Low

A tropical low existed from 8 to 11 February.

Tropical Low

A tropical low existed from 14 to 17 February.

Tropical Cyclone Dennis

Tropical Cyclone Dennis existed from 15 to 18 February.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Kirsty

A strong

, Kirsty crossed the coast at

Pardoo Station Pardoo Station is a pastoral lease, formerly a sheep station, and now a cattle station approximately east of Port Hedland and north of Marble Bar, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Description The property used to be about in si ...

near

Port Hedland A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

on 12 March 1996. The cyclone did considerable damage to tourist cabins and other structures.

Tropical Cyclone Ethel

Twice transited Cape York Peninsula before making a final landfall along the southern coast of the Gulf of Carpentaria, in the Northern Territory. Severe flooding triggered by Cyclone Ethel resulted in A$75 million (US$57 million).

Severe Tropical Cyclone Olivia

Lasting from 5 April 1996 to 12 April, Olivia reached Category 4 and destroyed 55 houses (plus 27 damaged) at the mining town of Pannawonica. Several buildings also suffered roof damage at neighbouring Mount Tom Price. There were only 10 minor injuries. A gust of 267 km/h was recorded at Varanus Island which is the equal highest recorded wind gust in Australia. More recently, a review conducted by WMO confirmed a reported gust of 408 km/h on Barrow Island on 10 April 1996, at the peak of the storm, making it the highest gust ever recorded on earth during a non-tornadic storm.

Tropical Depression 27S

Tropical Depression 27S existed from 12 to 19 April.

Tropical Cyclone Jenna

Tropical Cyclone Jenna existed from 30 April to 6 May.

Tropical Low

A tropical low existed in the vicinity of Brisbane from 30 April to 5 May.

Seasonal effects

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Olivia Olivia may refer to: People * Olivia (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Olivia (singer) (Olivia Longott, born 1981), American singer * Olívia (basketball) (Carlos Henrique Rodrigues do Nascimento, born 1974 ...

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Storm names

Tropical cyclones are assigned names by the Australian

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 ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

. Tropical cyclones are named if they are non-frontal low pressure systems of

synoptic scale The synoptic scale in meteorology (also known as large scale or cyclonic scale) is a horizontal length scale of the order of 1000 kilometers (about 620 miles) or more. This corresponds to a horizontal scale typical of mid-latitude depressions (e. ...

developing over warm waters, or if Dvorak intensity analysis indicate the presence of

gale force The Beaufort scale is an empirical measure that relates wind speed to observed conditions at sea or on land. Its full name is the Beaufort wind force scale. History The scale was devised in 1805 by the Irish hydrographer Francis Beaufort ...

or stronger winds near the centre. Therefore, tropical systems with gales in one or more quadrants, but not near the centre, are not named. All names assigned in the Australian region are selected sequentially. Only the names used during this cyclone season are listed below. The complete list of names for each basin are found in the

World Meteorological Organization The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology and geophysics. The WMO originated from the Internati ...

's official lists. Each Australian

Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre A Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre (RSMC) is responsible for the distribution of information, advisories, and warnings regarding the specific program they have a part of, agreed by consensus at the World Meteorological Organization as p ...

(

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Darwin, and

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

) maintained a list of names arranged alphabetically and alternating male and female. Tropical cyclones that develop in the South-East Indian Ocean are assigned names by the Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre in Perth. This region includes the areas east of

, south of the

Equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...

, and west of 125°E. Tropical cyclones that develop south of the Equator between 125°E and 141°E are assigned names by the Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre in Darwin,

. This area includes most of the cyclones that form in the

Arafura Sea The Arafura Sea (or Arafuru Sea) lies west of the Pacific Ocean, overlying the continental shelf between Australia and Western New Guinea (also called Papua), which is the Indonesian part of the Island of New Guinea. Geography The Arafura Sea is ...

and Western

Gulf of Carpentaria The Gulf of Carpentaria (, ) is a large, shallow sea enclosed on three sides by northern Australia and bounded on the north by the eastern Arafura Sea (the body of water that lies between Australia and New Guinea). The northern boundary is ...

. Tropical cyclones in the

Coral Sea The Coral Sea () is a marginal sea of the South Pacific off the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an interim Australian bioregion. The Coral Sea extends down the Australian northeast coast. Most of it is protected by the Fre ...

and Eastern Gulf of Carpentaria between 141°E and 160°E and south of 10°S are assigned names by the Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre in Brisbane,

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. Storms that enter the region that were named by the Mauritius meteorological service or the

Fiji Meteorological Service The Fiji Meteorological Service (FMS) is a Department of the government of Fiji responsible for providing weather forecasts and is based on the grounds of Nadi Airport in Nadi. The current director of Fiji Meteorological Service is Misaeli Funaki. ...

retain their original names. However, those that move from the Australian region into the South-West Indian Ocean (west of 90°E) are renamed by Météo-France. Additionally, the Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre in

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New Z ...

reserves the right to name cyclones that develop in the

Solomon Sea The Solomon Sea is a sea located within the Pacific Ocean. It lies between Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. Many major battles were fought there during World War II. Extent The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of ...

and

Gulf of Papua The Gulf of Papua is located in the southern coast region of New Guinea. It has a total surface area of . Geography Some of New Guinea's largest rivers, such as the Fly River, Turama River, Kikori River, Purari River, and Wawoi River flow i ...

, north of 10°S between 141°E and 160°E. Names issued by Port Moresby are retired after one use. Perth * Daryl - Emma - Frank - Gertie - Hubert - Isobel - Jacob - Kirsty Darwin * Barry - Olivia Brisbane * Celeste - Dennis - Ethel Additionally, one storm, Jenna, was named by the Mauritius Meteorological Service.

Retirement

At the end of the season, the Bureau of Meteorology

retired Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

seven of the thirteen names used during the season. The names were Frank, Gertie, Kirsty, Barry, Celeste, Ethel and Olivia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1995-96 Australian region cyclone season Australian region cyclone seasons

Systems

Severe Tropical Cyclone Daryl-Agnielle

Tropical Cyclone Emma

Severe Tropical Cyclone Frank

Severe Tropical Cyclone Gertie

Severe Tropical Cyclone Barry

Severe Tropical Cyclone Hubert-Coryna

Severe Tropical Cyclone Celeste

Tropical Cyclone Isobel

Severe Tropical Cyclone Jacob

Tropical Storm 12S

Tropical Low

Tropical Low

Tropical Cyclone Dennis

Severe Tropical Cyclone Kirsty

Tropical Cyclone Ethel

Severe Tropical Cyclone Olivia

Tropical Depression 27S

Tropical Cyclone Jenna

Tropical Low

Seasonal effects

Storm names

Retirement

See also

References