Two men are feared dead after their boat capsized in the Indian Ocean on Sunday afternoon.

Reports reveal that the two men were with four others at the time of the incident.

The four were rescued by a foreign ship on its way to the Port of Mombasa.

The group was heading to Zanzibar when strong winds caused the boat to overturn.

As of the article’s publication, the two men remain missing and their condition is still unknown.

The Sunday afternoon accident was attributed to waves expected to intensify due to Cyclone Hidaya.

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Weather forecasts had warned Kenyans about the cyclone, which was approaching after affecting Tanzania’s coast on Saturday evening.

Both Kenya’s and Tanzania’s meteorological departments reported that the cyclone had weakened, reducing its impact.

However, the departments cautioned that the region would still experience strong winds and heavy rain.

The government had not yet approved the resumption of beach, swimming, and fishing activities, which were previously suspended.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki directed county and coast guard officials to issue and enforce a ban on beach activities.

This ban impacted all non-essential transport activities until May 6, 2024, when the cyclone was predicted to reach Kenya’s coast.

4 Rescued, 2 Feared Dead as Boat Capsizes in Indian Ocean Amid Cyclone Warnings

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The Tanzania Meteorological Authority (TMA) announced on Saturday that after monitoring the weather for 6 hours, they determined that Tropical Cyclone Hidaya had weakened significantly.

Initially expected to hit Tanzania and Kenya over the weekend, Hidaya lost strength after impacting Mafia Island on May 4, 2024.

The cyclone caused destruction on Mafia Island, which is situated around 130 kilometers southeast of Dar es Salaam.

TMA reported that the rain clouds associated with the cyclone have dissipated and spread across various parts of the southern region of the country, including Lindi, Mtwara, Morogoro, and nearby areas.

Despite the weakening of the cyclone, Tanzanians are advised to stay alert and follow weather forecasts for their safety due to ongoing heavy rains.

Kenya was spared from the direct impact of the cyclone on Saturday afternoon due to its proximity to the Equator.

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The Kenya Meteorological Department indicated that Kenya would experience some effects from the cyclone’s outer edges, but it would decrease in intensity and become a depression. The cyclone’s center was expected to hit near or just below 5 degrees south of the equator.

The meteorological department was answering questions from a five-year-old statement regarding another cyclone, Kenneth, that had previously threatened the region.

Responding to online queries, the department reiterated that the physics of cyclone formation remains constant and that Kenya will experience effects from the cyclone’s outer regions, which will weaken into a depression. The cyclone’s center is expected to make landfall near or below 5 degrees south of the equator.

The East African region has been facing heavy rain over the last few months, leading to fatalities and displacement.

According to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, over 400 people have died due to this disaster, including around 210 in Kenya, over 150 in Tanzania, and others in Burundi, Rwanda, and Somalia.

Tanzania Declares Cyclone Hidaya has Fizzled Out

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Recent data suggests that Tropical Cyclone Hidaya has made landfall on the Tanzanian coast, prompting Kenyan authorities to raise a high alert.

Kenya Meteorological Department Director David Gikungu clarifies that landfall occurs when the storm’s center of circulation reaches the land.

“It will cause disruptions and is expected to weaken, though we are still closely tracking it and receiving updates from Tanzanian meteorological officials,” Gikungu stated.

As they maintain vigilant monitoring, KMD urged residents in coastal areas and those involved in maritime activities in the Indian Ocean to exercise extreme caution.

Intense rainfall is anticipated off the Kenyan coast starting on Sunday, May 5, and will peak from Monday, May 6, to Tuesday.

The cyclone’s impact is already noticeable offshore, with winds surpassing 40 knots (20.6 m/s) and waves over two meters high.

Fishing Activities Halted

Kenya has prohibited fishing, swimming, unnecessary transport, and other beach activities from May 4 to May 6 at midnight, which is expected to mark the end of the cyclone’s influence.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki declared a halt to all non-essential activities in Kenya’s territorial waters and along coastal beaches and nearby settlements.

“The government warns those involved in fishing, swimming, and recreation in Kenya’s territorial waters and the beaches of Kwale, Mombasa, Kilifi, and Lamu counties about potential risks to life and property in these areas,” stated Prof Kindiki.

If the cyclone hits Kenya, Prof Kindiki warned, it could bring heavy rain, strong winds, and powerful waves that may severely disrupt normal activities in Kenya’s territorial waters in the Indian Ocean and coastal communities.

“The County Security and Intelligence Committees (CSICs) of Kwale, Mombasa, Kilifi, and Lamu counties, in partnership with the Kenya Coast Guard Service (KCGS), are instructed to immediately issue warnings and enforce a ban on beach activities, fishing, swimming, non-essential transport within Kenya’s territorial waters, and evacuate settlements near the shore from May 4, 2024, at 5 pm until midnight on May 6, 2024, when Cyclone Hidaya is expected to dissipate,” announced Prof Kindiki.

Tanzanian Update

According to a statement from the Tanzania Meteorological Authority on Saturday, tropical cyclone Hidaya is near the Tanzanian coast and continues to dominate the weather in the region.

“Over the past 6 hours, heavy rain and strong winds have persisted. For example, weather stations in Mtwara, Kilwa, Zanzibar, and Dar es Salaam recorded winds exceeding 50 kilometers per hour at various times from last night to this morning.

Additionally, heavy rainfall was observed in the Mtwara and Lindi regions during this period, with Mtwara station reporting 75.5 millimeters of rain in 12 hours as of 9 pm last night.

This level of rainfall is significantly high, considering the average rainfall for May at the Mtwara station is just 54 millimeters.

So, the rain that fell at the Mtwara station within 12 hours is approximately 140% of the average May rainfall there,” the statement read.

The statement also mentioned that the cyclone is expected to continue approaching the Tanzanian coastal strip while gradually weakening by the night of Saturday, May 5, 2024.

KMD will keep providing updates as needed.

Blackout Strikes Tanzania as Cyclone Hidaya Hits, Kenya on Alert

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Cyclones, hurricanes, and typhoons are different terms for the same weather event: a tropical storm.

The terminology varies depending on the region. In the Atlantic and Northeast Pacific, these storms are called hurricanes; in the Northwest Pacific, they are referred to as typhoons; and in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean, they are known as cyclones.

Naming these storms helps the media report on them, raises community awareness, and aids in managing disasters.

Before 1999-2000, tropical cyclones were named solely after women. Since then, the names of both genders have been used.

This article delves into the naming process of cyclones, particularly focusing on East Africa, which is affected by cyclones in the Southwestern Indian Ocean.

 Historical context of cyclone naming

Naming storms began centuries ago to help track and communicate about them.

Initially, names were randomly chosen; a hurricane might be named after a saint’s day it occurred on or a location it affected.

By the early 1900s, meteorologists worldwide began using short, memorable names to reduce confusion when multiple storms happened simultaneously.

In the past, storms have been named inconsistently and retrospectively. For instance, an Atlantic storm that damaged a boat named Antje might have been called Antje’s hurricane.

 Modern naming systems

Currently, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is responsible for naming cyclones, hurricanes, and typhoons.

Each ocean basin has its list of names, which are used in rotation. In the Indian Ocean region, affecting East Africa, the process is managed by the Regional Specialized Meteorological Center (RSMC) in La Réunion, France.

The relevant tropical cyclone regional body determines the names during its annual or biennial meeting.

Naming Cyclone Kenneth

Cyclone Kenneth struck Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province after affecting the Comoros islands.

How names are chosen

The RSMC La Réunion keeps a list of names proposed by regional countries. These names are typically short, unique, and culturally meaningful to local people.

Names can be reused after several years unless the storm was notably deadly or costly, in which case the name is retired.

The choice of names is based on their recognition by regional residents to help people understand and remember cyclones.

For instance, Cyclone Idai, which hit Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Madagascar in March 2019, was one of the most destructive cyclones in the Southwestern Indian Ocean. Due to its severity, the name Idai was retired from future lists.

 Examples of cyclones in East Africa

East Africa has experienced several notable cyclones, including:

• Cyclone Kenneth (2019): Following Cyclone Idai, Kenneth struck Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province. It was the strongest cyclone to ever make landfall in Mozambique.
• Cyclone Jobo (2021): Jobo approached Tanzania and was remarkable for being one of the few cyclones to directly impact the country.

The process of naming

Every year, the World Meteorological Organization releases a list of potential cyclone names. Once a tropical disturbance develops into a cyclone with sustained winds of at least 65 km/h, it receives the next available name from the list.

This systematic approach ensures that names are assigned in an orderly and sequential manner, which is crucial for public awareness and coordination of relief efforts.

Assigning names to tropical cyclones simplifies tracking and discussing specific storms, especially when multiple storms are active simultaneously.

Understanding the Naming of Cyclones, Hurricanes, and Typhoons in East Africa

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On Thursday, the Kenyan government cautioned that a tropical cyclone named ‘Hidaya’ is expected to impact the Coastal region within the coming days.

According to a report shared with Gossipa2z.com, the cyclone could bring heavy rain, large waves, and strong winds that might disrupt marine activities in the Indian Ocean.

The World Meteorological Organization describes a tropical cyclone as a rapidly rotating storm that originates over tropical oceans.

Cyclone Hidaya developed over the South Indian Ocean, east of Tanzania and north-northeast of Comoros, on Wednesday.

The storm was named ‘Hidaya’ by Meteo France La Reunion and is predicted to move west-northwest between May 2-4, 2024.

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The Tanzania Meteorological Authority (TMA) forecasts that Cyclone Hidaya will approach the country’s coast between Thursday and Monday.

Crisis24 publication suggests the storm will weaken while passing north of Tanzania’s Mafia Island, then shift to a north-northwest trajectory as it nears the eastern Tanzania coast on May 4 and will likely dissipate as it travels between Unguja Island and the mainland on May 5.

TMA issued a warning to residents in potentially affected Coastal areas, stating the cyclone could bring heavy rains and strong winds.

It added that the presence of Hidaya near the coast may influence the country’s weather, causing heavy rain and strong winds in regions such as Mtwara, Lindi, and Pwani (including Mafia Islands).

Other affected regions could include Dar es Salaam, Tanga, Morogoro, Ugunja, and Pemba, with the southern coastal areas facing impact on May 3 and other coastal areas experiencing effects from May 4 to 6.

Kenya Braces for Cyclone Hidaya: Ruto’s Cabinet Issues Alert, What We Know So Far

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