Cyclone Gita at peak intensity south of Fiji on 14 February
Meteorological history
Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
10-minute sustained (FMS)
Highest winds
205 km/h (125 mph)
Lowest pressure
927 hPa (mbar); 27.37 inHg
Category 4-equivalent tropical cyclone
1-minute sustained (SSHWS/JTWC)
Highest winds
230 km/h (145 mph)
Lowest pressure
937 hPa (mbar); 27.67 inHg
Overall effects
Fatalities
1
Damage
$253 million
Areas affected
Vanuatu, Fiji, Wallis and Futuna, Samoa, American Samoa, Cook Islands, Niue, Tonga, New Caledonia, Queensland, New Zealand
IBTrACS
Part of the 2017–18 South Pacific cyclone season
Severe Tropical Cyclone Gita was the most intense tropical cyclone to impact Tonga since reliable records began. The second named storm and first major tropical cyclone of the 2017–18 South Pacific cyclone season, Gita originated from a monsoon trough that was active in the South Pacific in early February 2018. First classified as a tropical disturbance on 3 February, the nascent system meandered near Vanuatu for several days with little development. After acquiring a steady east trajectory near Fiji, it organized into a Category 1 tropical cyclone on 9 February near Samoa. Arcing south in a clockwise turn, the system rapidly intensified, and became a severe tropical cyclone on 10 February near Niue.
Throughout its path in the South Pacific, Cyclone Gita affected multiple island nations and territories. Tonga was the hardest-hit, with severe damage occurring on the islands of Tongatapu and ʻEua; two fatalities and forty-one injuries occurred in the kingdom. At least 171 homes were destroyed and more than 1,100 suffered damage. Violent winds destroyed homes and left the two islands largely without power. Torrential rains and damaging winds caused widespread disruptions in Samoa and American Samoa, prompting emergency declarations in both. Outlying islands in the Fijian Lau Islands were significantly affected, particularly Ono-i-Lau and Vatoa. Wallis and Futuna, Niue, and Vanuatu were also affected, but impacts in those areas were minor. Total damage from Gita is estimated to be in excess of US$252 million, primarily in American Samoa and Tonga.
Severe Tropical CycloneGita was the most intense tropical cyclone to impact Tonga since reliable records began. The second named storm and first major...
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It was reopened after being refurbished in 2017, but badly damaged by CycloneGita just a few months later. It was re-opened again in 2019. Thomas, Chris...
Minister: ʻAkilisi Pōhiva 12 February – Tonga was hit by the CycloneGita, the strongest cyclone to strike Tonga in its recorded history, with winds of up...
100-year-old Tongan Parliament House was destroyed by CycloneGita, a Category 4 tropical cyclone that passed through the nation on 12 and 13 February...
Recovery Framework for Tropical CycloneGita". Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery. 2018. "CycloneGita: Tonga damage worst in decades"...
2015. "'We know you need more than books' – PM gives Tonga $10m for CycloneGita rebuild". 1 News. 7 March 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2018. Belich, James...
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Konrote Prime Minister: Frank Bainimarama 13 February – Fiji hit by the CycloneGita 2018 Fijian general election 27 January – Mereoni Vibose, athlete (b...
Joey Mataele, an influential individual in Tongan society. In 2018, CycloneGita, which destroyed the Tonga parliament building, damaged the organisation's...
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