Mauritius on Alert 3, braces for direct impact by powerful cyclone Freddy

Mauritius is set to go on cyclone Alert 3 early tomorrow, Monday 20 February 2023, as millions of people in the Indian Ocean are bracing for Freddy – the strongest cyclone in more than a decade.

Powerful cyclone Freddy, which was formed off the southern coast of Indonesia in early February and strengthened into a significant storm with maximum sustained winds at 325 km/hr. Over the weeks, it has weakened in a category 4 cyclone, but still capable of catastrophic damage.

After chairing the National Crisis Committee late on Saturday afternoon, Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth announced that Freddy represents a “real danger” for Mauritius if its maintains its trajectory towards the south-west. 

According to Mauritius’ Met Office, Freddy is expected to pass its closest point to Mauritius tomorrow evening, 140 km north-northwest of the island but impacts will still be felt.

A slight southward curl would imply a direct impact on Mauritius.

 The island of Rodrigues is on Alert 3 and is said to already suffering from cyclonic conditions.

At 4pm, the intense tropical cyclone Freddy was centred about 720km east-north-east of Mauritius, at latitude 17.3 degrees south and longitude 64.1 degrees east. It was moving towards the west-southwest at about 25 km/h.

Source: Defi Media, Mauritius Met Office