 Cyclone Connie on January 28 | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | January 24, 2000 |
| Dissipated | February 2, 2000 |
| Intense tropical cyclone | |
| 10-minute sustained (MFR) | |
| Highest winds | 185 km/h (115 mph) |
| Lowest pressure | 930 hPa (mbar); 27.46 inHg |
| Category 4-equivalent tropical cyclone | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/JTWC) | |
| Highest winds | 220 km/h (140 mph) |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 3 |
| Areas affected | Mauritius, Réunion, Mozambique |
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 1999–2000 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season | |
Intense Tropical Cyclone Connie was a strong tropical cyclone that affected both Mauritius and Réunion in late January 2000. On January 24, 2000, a tropical disturbance developed well east of Madagascar. Despite moderate wind shear, it gradually strengthened while stalling offshore, and late on January 25, was believed to have attained tropical storm status. After turning generally southeast, Connie attained cyclone intensity on January 27. Rapid intensification ensued. Shortly after developing a well-defined eye, Connie attained peak intensity at 0000 UTC on January 28 as an intense tropical cyclone. Thereafter, Connie slowly weakened due to increased wind shear as thunderstorm activity quickly diminished around the eye. After threatening Mauritius, Connie then turned southwest, passing very close to Réunion late on January 28. After briefly leveling off in intensity that evening, Connie soon became less organized, and midday on January 29, the eye became less defined. The next day, Connie weakened to a severe tropical storm. Despite forecasts of additional weakening, Connie maintained its intensity for most of January 31. However, weakening resumed on February 1 and the storm transitioned to an extratropical cyclone on February 2. Two days later, Connie merged with another low-pressure area.
Despite passing well offshore Mauritius, both the airport and the port were closed due to lack of certainty in the storm's path. Connie brought several days of heavy rains and gusty winds to the island. One person was killed there and power was briefly disconnected. Overall, damage on Mauritius was minor. While passing near Reunion, Cyclone Connie brought heavy rains to the island nation. Power was knocked out to around 40,000 individuals. Roughly 100 homes were destroyed, leaving 600 people were homeless. Another 300 sought shelter. Two people were killed, but damage in Reunion was minimal. The extratropical remnants of the system later brought flooding to Mozambique, where 20,000 people were listed as homeless.