Cyclones in New Caledonia
Cyclones only occur occasionally in New Caledonia. On average, they happen about 4 times a year. The hardest hit regions are South Province and Loyalty Islands.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 New Caledonia in the past 12 months was »Dovi«. It reached a wind speed of up to 124 km/h on February 10, 2022 at 8:00 pm local time near Vao and was 20 kilometers in diameter at the time. According to the internationally accepted Saffir-Simpson classification, this corresponded to a category 1 cyclone. On the open sea, speeds of up to 165 km/h were measured (category 2).
Other natural hazards in New Caledonia:
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Current satellite image of the southwest Pacific Ocean
08.02.2023 © CIMSS University of Wisconsin-Madison
Most violent cyclones in New Caledonia since 2018
Irene: January 18-19, 2023
Wind speed:
max. 94 km/h
Diameter:
max. 296 km
Air pressure:
below 992 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On January 19th, 2023 at 8:00 am it had the shortest distance at about 161 km northwest of Fayaou in Loyalty Islands.
Hale: January 6-8, 2023
Wind speed:
max. 83 km/h
Diameter:
max. 185 km
Air pressure:
below 992 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On January 8th, 2023 at 11:00 am it had the shortest distance at about 252 km south of Noum in South Province.
Gina: May 18-22, 2022
Wind speed:
max. 65 km/h
Diameter:
max. 278 km
Air pressure:
below 1002 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On May 20th, 2022 at 11:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 180 km northwest of Fayaou in Loyalty Islands.
Fili: April 4-9, 2022
Wind speed:
max. 100 km/h
Diameter:
max. 296 km
Air pressure:
below 989 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On April 6th, 2022 at 5:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 58 km east of Wala in North Province.
Dovi: February 9-12, 2022
Wind speed:
max. 165 km/h
on land:
max. 124 km/h
Diameter:
max. 241 km
Air pressure:
below 956 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 2
Affected regions
Loyalty Islands
Loyalty Islands
Seth: December 31, 2021 to January 5, 2022
Region:
Eastern Australia
Wind speed:
max. 102 km/h
Diameter:
max. 352 km
Air pressure:
below 988 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On January 2nd, 2022 at 5:00 am it had the shortest distance at about 670 km southeast of Wala in North Province.
Ruby: December 11-15, 2021
Region:
Eastern Australia
Wind speed:
max. 130 km/h
on land:
max. 111 km/h
Diameter:
max. 185 km
Air pressure:
below 980 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 1
Affected regions
North Province
South Province
North Province
South Province
Niran: March 1-7, 2021
Region:
Eastern Australia
Wind speed:
max. 256 km/h
on land:
max. 183 km/h
Diameter:
max. 222 km
Eye:
max. 37 km
Air pressure:
below 917 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 5
Affected regions
South Province
South Province
Lucas: January 31 to February 4, 2021
Wind speed:
max. 119 km/h
on land:
max. 72 km/h
Diameter:
max. 222 km
Air pressure:
below 980 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
Affected regions
Loyalty Islands
South Province
Loyalty Islands
South Province
Harold: April 1-11, 2020
Wind speed:
max. 278 km/h
Diameter:
max. 3741 km
Eye:
max. 56 km
Air pressure:
below 903 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 5
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On April 5th, 2020 at 5:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 500 km northwest of Wala in North Province.
Gretel: March 13-19, 2020
Region:
Eastern Australia
Wind speed:
max. 115 km/h
Diameter:
max. 370 km
Air pressure:
below 971 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On March 15th, 2020 at 8:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 136 km southeast of Poya in North Province.
Uesi: February 6-17, 2020
Wind speed:
max. 143 km/h
Diameter:
max. 3741 km
Eye:
max. 37 km
Air pressure:
below 969 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 1
Affected regions
North Province
North Province
Rita: November 22-29, 2019
Wind speed:
max. 130 km/h
Diameter:
max. 630 km
Air pressure:
below 980 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 1
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On November 27th, 2019 at 11:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 609 km northwest of Fayaou in Loyalty Islands.
Ann: May 10-18, 2019
Region:
Eastern Australia
Wind speed:
max. 111 km/h
Diameter:
max. 204 km
Air pressure:
below 989 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
tropical storm
The cyclone did not make direct landfall. On May 11th, 2019 at 11:00 pm it had the shortest distance at about 595 km northeast of Wala in North Province.
Oma: February 11-28, 2019
Region:
Eastern Australia
Wind speed:
max. 139 km/h
Diameter:
max. 3741 km
Eye:
max. 167 km
Air pressure:
below 968 mbar
Saffir-Simpson scale:
category 1
Affected regions
North Province
South Province
Loyalty Islands
North Province
South Province
Loyalty Islands
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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