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Meteorological and Climatic Aspects of Cyclone Idai and Kenneth

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Cyclones in Southern Africa

Part of the book series: Sustainable Development Goals Series ((SDGS))

Abstract

The year 2019 was a year of weather extremes that included high-intensity fires, droughts, floods and tropical cyclones that affected various countries across the world. These events had a devastating impact on economies globally. Understanding the meteorological and climatic aspects of these events is the sine qua non for effective disaster management. This chapter examines the meteorological aspects of cyclones Idai and Kenneth, which occurred successively in 2019. The chapter is premised on the analysis of archival weather data, document analysis and satellite image interpretation. Results show that there is a slight increase in the number of tropical cyclones in the basin in general and a significant increase of higher category cyclones of categories 4 and 5, with a decline in lower category cyclones. The cyclones had a direct impact on Mozambique, Malawi, Madagascar, the Comoros Islands and Zimbabwe, with a devastating impact on the socio-economic and environmental facets of life within the region, setting back the gains that were made in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Given the experiences in 2019, there is a need to revisit and enforce building planning design and construction of more robust infrastructure with the aim of reducing vulnerabilities and reduce losses associated with higher category hurricanes (tropical cyclones). The study also recommends serious investment into seasonal cyclone forecasting through improved modelling, disaster preparedness, communication and management going forward to reduce cyclone-associated losses in the SADC region.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ecotourism Management, Vaal University of Technology Andries Potgieter BlvD, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa

    Kaitano Dube

  2. Institute of Corporate Citizenship, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa

    Lazarus Chapungu

  3. School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Jennifer M. Fitchett

Authors
  1. Kaitano Dube
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  2. Lazarus Chapungu
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  3. Jennifer M. Fitchett
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Correspondence to Kaitano Dube .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Business and Climate Change Institute for Corporate Citizenship, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa

    Godwell Nhamo

  2. Ecotourism Management, Vaal University of Technology Andries Potgieter BlvD, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa

    Kaitano Dube

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Dube, K., Chapungu, L., Fitchett, J.M. (2021). Meteorological and Climatic Aspects of Cyclone Idai and Kenneth. In: Nhamo, G., Dube, K. (eds) Cyclones in Southern Africa. Sustainable Development Goals Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74262-1_2

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