 Cyclone Thelma near peak intensity | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 3 December 1998 |
| Dissipated | 15 December 1998 |
| Category 5 severe tropical cyclone | |
| 10-minute sustained (Aus) | |
| Highest winds | 220 km/h (140 mph) |
| Lowest pressure | 920 hPa (mbar); 27.17 inHg |
| Category 4-equivalent tropical cyclone | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/JTWC) | |
| Highest winds | 250 km/h (155 mph) |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 1 direct |
| Areas affected | Northern Territory, Western Australia |
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 1998–99 Australian region cyclone season | |
Severe Tropical Cyclone Thelma was a tropical cyclone that affected northern Australia from 6 December 1998 until 12 December 1998. Cyclone Thelma was one of the most intense tropical cyclones to be observed off the coast of Australia. Thelma formed in the Arafura Sea north of the Northern Territory while intensifying rapidly into a Category 5 cyclone, passing very near the Tiwi Islands and posing a severe threat to Darwin, but passed by at a distance of 200 km (120 mi). It then moved across the Timor Sea before hitting the north Kimberley coast. Thelma was the first known Category 5 cyclone to be observed in the Timor Sea, and was also the most intense cyclone to threaten Darwin since Cyclone Tracy on Christmas Eve in 1974.[1][2] Ten months after the storm's passage, the skull of an 81-year-old man, who was believed to have been swept away by flood waters, was discovered.[3]
- ^ Bureau of Meteorology. "Bureau - Severe Tropical Cyclone Thelma". Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved 1 August 2006.
- ^ Gary Padgett (1999). "MONTHLY GLOBAL TROPICAL CYCLONE SUMMARY - DECEMBER, 1998". Archived from the original on 16 March 2006. Retrieved 1 August 2006.
- ^ Camden Smith (11 October 1999). "Cyclone: Skull found in bush". Northern Territory News.