Cyclones in Reunion
Cyclones only occur occasionally in Reunion. On average, they happen about 4 times a year. The hardest hit cities are Sainte-Suzanne and Saint-Denis.The typical cyclone season depends on the summer monsoon. In the months before (May to June) and after (October to November), the most severe storms occur.
The most severe cyclone to make landfall in Reunion in the past 12 months was »Freddy«. It reached a wind speed of up to 217 km/h on February 20, 2023 at 7:00 pm local time near Sainte-Suzanne and was 82 kilometers in diameter at the time. According to the internationally accepted Saffir-Simpson classification, this corresponded to a category 4 cyclone. On the open sea, speeds of up to 256 km/h were measured (category 5).
Other natural hazards in Reunion:
› Tsunamis
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Back to overview: Reunion
Current satellite image of the Indian Ocean
02.06.2023 © CIMSS University of Wisconsin-Madison
Most violent cyclones in Reunion since 2018
Freddy: February 6-24, 2023
Wind speed:
max. 256 km/h
on land:
max. 217 km/h
Diameter:
max. 582 km
Air pressure:
below 924 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 5
Most Affected Cities
Sainte-Suzanne
Saint-Denis
Le Port
Sainte-Suzanne
Saint-Denis
Le Port
Jasmine: April 24-28, 2022
Wind speed:
max. 100 km/h
on land:
max. 50 km/h
Diameter:
max. 963 km
Air pressure:
below 984 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
Most Affected Cities
Saint-Leu
Saint-Leu
Emnati: February 16-24, 2022
Wind speed:
max. 213 km/h
Diameter:
max. 907 km
Air pressure:
below 941 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 4
Most Affected Cities
Sainte-Suzanne
Saint-Denis
Le Port
Sainte-Suzanne
Saint-Denis
Le Port
Dumako: February 13-16, 2022
Wind speed:
max. 94 km/h
Diameter:
max. 444 km
Air pressure:
below 995 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On February 14th, 2022 at 4:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 394 km north of Saint-Denis.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Ambodifotatra in Madagascar on February 15th at 10:00 am.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Ambodifotatra in Madagascar on February 15th at 10:00 am.
Batsirai: January 27 to February 8, 2022
Wind speed:
max. 230 km/h
Diameter:
max. 796 km
Air pressure:
below 932 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 4
Most Affected Cities
Sainte-Suzanne
Saint-Denis
Le Port
Saint-Paul
Sainte-Suzanne
Saint-Denis
Le Port
Saint-Paul
Iman: March 7-9, 2021
Wind speed:
max. 83 km/h
Diameter:
max. 185 km
Air pressure:
below 991 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On March 7th, 2021 at 10:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 326 km southwest of Saint-Philippe.
Iman: March 2-11, 2021
Wind speed:
max. 87 km/h
on land:
max. 74 km/h
Diameter:
max. 1185 km
Air pressure:
below 990 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
Most Affected Cities
Saint-Paul
Saint-Leu
Les Avirons
Saint-Pierre
Saint-Joseph
Saint-Paul
Saint-Leu
Les Avirons
Saint-Pierre
Saint-Joseph
Danilo: December 30, 2020 to January 12, 2021
Wind speed:
max. 111 km/h
on land:
max. 43 km/h
Diameter:
max. 1148 km
Air pressure:
below 982 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
Most Affected Cities
Sainte-Rose
Saint-Benoît
Bras-Panon
Sainte-Suzanne
Saint-Denis
Sainte-Rose
Saint-Benoît
Bras-Panon
Sainte-Suzanne
Saint-Denis
Chalane: December 25-30, 2020
Wind speed:
max. 111 km/h
Diameter:
max. 241 km
Air pressure:
below 990 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On December 25th, 2020 at 10:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 463 km north of Le Port.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Ambodifotatra in Madagascar on December 26th at 4:00 pm.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Ambodifotatra in Madagascar on December 26th at 4:00 pm.
Chalane: December 20, 2020 to January 4, 2021
Wind speed:
max. 124 km/h
Diameter:
max. 982 km
Air pressure:
below 975 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 1
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On December 26th, 2020 at 1:00 am it had the shortest distance at about 256 km north of Le Port.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Antalaha in Madagascar on December 26th at 1:00 am.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Antalaha in Madagascar on December 26th at 1:00 am.
Herold: March 12-21, 2020
Wind speed:
max. 185 km/h
Diameter:
max. 648 km
Eye:
max. 56 km
Air pressure:
below 955 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 3
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On March 17th, 2020 at 4:00 am it had the shortest distance at about 295 km northwest of Sainte-Suzanne.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Cargados Carajos in Mauritius on March 17th at 4:00 am.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Cargados Carajos in Mauritius on March 17th at 4:00 am.
Francisco: February 3-15, 2020
Wind speed:
max. 83 km/h
Diameter:
max. 685 km
Air pressure:
below 993 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On February 11th, 2020 at 10:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 196 km northwest of Sainte-Suzanne.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Grand Gaube in Mauritius on February 11th at 1:00 pm.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Grand Gaube in Mauritius on February 11th at 1:00 pm.
Esami: January 22-26, 2020
Wind speed:
max. 83 km/h
Diameter:
max. 241 km
Air pressure:
below 990 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On January 22nd, 2020 at 10:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 94 km northwest of Saint-Beno.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Grande Pointe aux Piments in Mauritius on January 22nd at 7:00 pm.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Grande Pointe aux Piments in Mauritius on January 22nd at 7:00 pm.
Diane: January 22-29, 2020
Wind speed:
max. 102 km/h
Diameter:
max. 444 km
Air pressure:
below 985 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On January 24th, 2020 at 7:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 124 km north of Sainte-Suzanne.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Mahavelona in Madagascar on January 23rd at 10:00 pm.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Mahavelona in Madagascar on January 23rd at 10:00 pm.
Calvinia: December 17, 2019 to January 3, 2020
Wind speed:
max. 139 km/h
Diameter:
max. 444 km
Eye:
max. 56 km
Air pressure:
below 970 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 1
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On December 31st, 2019 at 4:00 am it had the shortest distance at about 198 km west of Sainte-Rose.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Cargados Carajos in Mauritius on December 28th at 10:00 pm.
Instead, the first landfall occurred near Cargados Carajos in Mauritius on December 28th at 10:00 pm.
Gelena: February 4-16, 2019
Wind speed:
max. 217 km/h
Diameter:
max. 222 km
Eye:
max. 56 km
Air pressure:
below 942 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 4
The cyclone did not make direct landfall in Reunion. On February 9th, 2019 at 4:00 am it had the shortest distance at about 437 km northwest of Sainte-Suzanne.
These evaluations are based on data from the National Centers for Environmental Information of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Individual data have been summarized or translated.
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