Cyclone Freddy

Very Intense Tropical Cyclone Freddy

Freddy at its peak intensity while northeast of Rodrigues on 19 February.
Meteorological history
Formed	5 February 2023
Dissipated	14 March 2023
Duration	5 weeks and 2 days (Longest-lasting tropical system on record)
Very intense tropical cyclone
10-minute sustained (MFR)
Highest winds	230 km/h (145 mph)
Lowest pressure	927 hPa (mbar); 27.37 inHg
Category 5-equivalent tropical cyclone
1-minute sustained (SSHWS/JTWC)
Highest winds	270 km/h (165 mph)
Lowest pressure	918 hPa (mbar); 27.11 inHg
Overall effects
Fatalities	≥1,434 (Second-deadliest tropical cyclone in the South-West Indian Ocean, third-deadliest in the Southern Hemisphere)
Injuries	≥2,004
Missing	19
Damage	≥$481 million (2024 USD)
Areas affected	Mascarene Islands Madagascar Mozambique Zimbabwe Malawi South Africa Eswatini Zambia
IBTrACS: 1, 2
Part of the 2022–23 Australian region and South-West Indian Ocean cyclone seasons
History Meteorological history Response Humanitarian response Other wikis Commons: Freddy images

Very Intense Tropical Cyclone Freddy, also known as Severe Tropical Cyclone Freddy, was an exceptionally long-lived, powerful, and deadly tropical cyclone that traversed the southern Indian Ocean for more than five weeks in February and March 2023. Freddy was the longest-lasting tropical cyclone ever recorded worldwide, traveling across the southern Indian Ocean, Mozambique, and Madagascar for 36 days, surpassing the record set by Hurricane John in 1994.^{[nb 1]} Freddy also produced the most Accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) of any individual cyclone. Additionally, it is the third-deadliest tropical cyclone recorded in the Southern Hemisphere, only behind 2019's Cyclone Idai and the 1973 Flores cyclone. Freddy was the third named storm of the 2022–23 Australian region cyclone season, and the second very intense tropical cyclone of the 2022–23 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season.

Freddy first developed as a disturbance on 5 February 2023. While in the Australian region cyclone basin, the storm quickly intensified and became a Category 4 severe tropical cyclone, before it moved into the South-West Indian Ocean basin, where it intensified further. The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) estimated 1-minute sustained winds of 270 km/h (165 mph) at Freddy's peak strength, equivalent to Category 5 strength on the Saffir–Simpson scale. On 19 February, Météo-France (MFR) upgraded it to a very intense tropical cyclone, estimated 10-minute winds of 230 km/h (145 mph). Freddy made its first landfall near Mananjary, Madagascar. The storm rapidly weakened overland but re-strengthened in the Mozambique Channel. Shortly afterward, Freddy made second landfall just south of Vilankulos, Mozambique, before rapidly weakening again. Unexpectedly, the system managed to survive its visit in Mozambique and emerged back over the channel on 1 March. Soon after, Freddy was re-classified as a tropical cyclone by the MFR. Over the course of 10 days, Freddy rapidly intensified on two occasions, eventually slowing to a semi-stationary movement near Quelimane, Mozambique. Moving northwest inland, the storm gradually deteriorated and was last noted on 14 March.

Preparations for the storm in the Mascarene Islands included flight groundings, cyclone alerts, and personnel being prepped for the aftermath, among other things. In Madagascar, areas previously affected by Cyclones Batsirai and Cheneso were feared to be worsened by the storm's arrival. Impacts in Mozambique were more severe than in Madagascar and included heavy rainfall in the southern half of the country and widely damaged infrastructure. Effects in Mozambique were exacerbated after its second landfall with further floods and wind damage. The hardest-hit was Malawi where incessant rains caused catastrophic flash floods, especially Blantyre. The nation's power grid was crippled, with its hydroelectric dam rendered inoperable.

Overall, the cyclone killed at least 1,434 people, injured 2,004 others, and inflicted an estimated US$481 million in damage. Due to the damage and loss of life, the name Freddy was later retired from the Australian rotating naming lists by the Bureau of Meteorology.
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