Moderate Tropical Storm Ana was a deadly
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. Depend ...
that affected the African nations of
Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
,
Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...
and
Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
and the third-deadliest
tropical cyclone in 2022 thus far, after the Western Pacific
Tropical Storm Megi and
Cyclone Batsirai
Intense Tropical Cyclone Batsirai was a deadly tropical cyclone which heavily impacted Madagascar in February 2022, becoming the strongest tropical cyclone to strike Madagascar since Cyclone Enawo in 2017. It made landfall two weeks after Trop ...
(with the latter impacting Madagascar two weeks after Ana). The first named storm of the
2021–22 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season
The 2021–22 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season featured the record latest start for the first system to develop. Despite the late start, it was an above-average season that produced 12 named storms, with 5 becoming tropical cyclones. The ...
, Ana developed from an area of convection that was designated as ''Invest 93S'' northeast of Madagascar.
Meteorological history
At 07:30 UTC on 20 January, the
Joint Typhoon Warning Center
The Joint typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) is a joint United States Navy – United States Air Force command in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The JTWC is responsible for the issuing of tropical cyclone warnings in the North-West Pacific Ocean, South P ...
reported a formation of an area of convection, which they designated as ''Invest 93S'', approximately from
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
, with the agency giving a low chance for potential
tropical cyclogenesis
Tropical cyclogenesis is the development and strengthening of a tropical cyclone in the atmosphere. The mechanisms through which tropical cyclogenesis occurs are distinctly different from those through which temperate cyclogenesis occurs. Tropi ...
within the next 24 hours. At midday, the MFR observed a closed circulation north-northwest of
Saint-Brandon, with a rather ill-defined center. The formation of the disturbance was caused by the surge of monsoonal flow. By the evening, the JTWC upgraded the system to a medium chance for potential tropical cyclogenesis, after noticing its obscure low-level circulation (LLC). Early the next day, at 02:00 UTC, the JTWC issued its Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) for Invest 93S and also upgraded the system again to a high chance for potential tropical cyclogenesis, as the agency noted its consolidation into a well-defined low-level center. Later at 12:00 UTC, the MFR declared the tropical low pressure system as a zone of disturbed weather, becoming the first system of the season. The department noted the elongated circulation, which was a little more compact than yesterday, but still rather poorly organized. Twelve hours later, the MFR upgraded it to tropical disturbance status, as they found that the system's cloud pattern had improved. Furthermore, its center had become well-defined but was still overall ill-defined and elongated. The disturbance slowly consolidated into a defined convective structure while also developing distinct curved rainbands, which prompted the MFR to upgrade it to a tropical depression by 06:00 UTC on 22 January.
Between 08:00 UTC and 09:00 UTC, the system's center crossed between
Toamasina
Toamasina (), meaning "like salt" or "salty", unofficially and in French Tamatave, is the capital of the Atsinanana region on the east coast of Madagascar on the Indian Ocean. The city is the chief seaport of the country, situated northeast of it ...
and
ÃŽle Sainte-Marie
Nosy Boraha , previously known as Sainte-Marie, main town Ambodifotatra, is an island off the east coast of Madagascar. The island forms an administrative district within Analanjirofo Region, and covers an area of 222 km2.
It has a popula ...
as a tropical depression, with the MFR re-classifying the system as an overland depression.
Because of the mountainous terrain of Madagascar, the system weakened a bit but still managed to preserve its organized convection and its low-level center.
At 06:00 UTC the next day, the MFR re-classified it again as a tropical disturbance after entering the
Mozambique Channel
The Mozambique Channel (french: Canal du Mozambique, mg, Lakandranon'i Mozambika, pt, Canal de Moçambique) is an arm of the Indian Ocean located between the Southeast African countries of Madagascar and Mozambique. The channel is about long ...
. Six hours later, it re-intensified into a tropical depression, as it gradually improved its convective structure and cooling of its convective bands. Its low-level clouds had developed a distinct curved pattern near the center. This occurred after entering the Mozambique Channel, where more conductive environmental conditions were available along with good convergence of monsoonal flow. At 15:00 UTC, the JTWC declared the system a tropical cyclone and designated it ''07S''. The MFR later upgraded it to a moderate tropical storm and named it ''Ana'', becoming the first named storm of the season. It then made landfall in Mozambique, and rapidly weakened, primarily due to friction in land mass.
Impact
The storm caused dozens of casualties in Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique, while causing severe damage to infrastructure in Malawi. It was feared that
Cyclone Batsirai
Intense Tropical Cyclone Batsirai was a deadly tropical cyclone which heavily impacted Madagascar in February 2022, becoming the strongest tropical cyclone to strike Madagascar since Cyclone Enawo in 2017. It made landfall two weeks after Trop ...
– which made landfall in Madagascar on 6 February – would hinder relief work.
Madagascar
A
series of floods killed 11 people on 18 January.
New heavy rains and floods increased the death toll to 58 in Madagascar.
55,000 people lost their homes.
Malawi
The region around
Mulanje
Mulanje, formerly called Mlanje, is a town in the Southern Region of Malawi, close to the border with Mozambique, to the east. It is near the Mulanje Massif.
Location
The town of Mulanje lies along the M-2 highway from Thyolo to the west to t ...
in Southern Malawi was particularly affected. In Malawi 37 were reported dead with another 22 remaining missing as of 31 January. 158 people were injured.
Most of the country lost electricity, and 200,000 had to leave their homes.
109,359 people were forced to reside in emergency camps.
Floods damaged the
Kapichira Hydroelectric Power Station, which provides 30% of the country's electricity. The nationwide electricity supply remained intermittent days after the storm passed.
Mozambique
The storm also killed 20 people in Mozambique. 10,000 houses in Mozambique were destroyed as a result of the storm.
See also
*
Weather of 2022
The following is a list of weather events that occurred on Earth in the year 2022. The year began with a La Niña. The most common weather events to have a significant impact are blizzards, cold waves, droughts, heat waves, wildfires, floods, tor ...
*
Tropical cyclones in 2022
In 2022, tropical cyclones have formed in seven major bodies of water, commonly known as tropical cyclone basins. Tropical cyclones will be named by various weather agencies when they attain maximum sustained winds of . So far, 132 systems hav ...
*
Tropical Storm Dumako
Moderate Tropical Storm Dumako was a weak tropical cyclone that caused moderate damage in Madagascar. The fourth disturbance and fourth named storm of the 2021–22 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season, it was the third storm to make landfall ...
(2022) – another tropical storm which affected the same countries a month after Ana.
References
External links
Météo-France La RéunionDirection Générale de la Météorologie de MadagascarMauritius Meteorological Services
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ana
2021–22 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season
2022 disasters in Africa
2022 in Madagascar
2022 in Malawi
2022 in Mozambique
2020s in Mauritius
2020s in Zambia
Cyclones in Madagascar
Cyclones in Mozambique
January 2022 events in Africa
Tropical cyclones in 2022
Moderate tropical storms