JOY

History

Severe Tropical Cyclone Joy began as a weak tropical low that formed east of the Solomon Islands on 15 December 1990. The system tracked slowly westward, passing south of the island group while gradually organising, and the Bureau of Meteorology upgraded it to cyclone strength and assigned the name Joy on 18 December.

Steered west-southwestward by a ridge to its south, Joy initially battled upper-level wind shear, but conditions improved as it turned towards the southwest and approached the jet stream. Rapid intensification followed, and the cyclone reached hurricane-force strength on 21 December. At 00:00 UTC on 23 December, as it approached the Far North Queensland coast, Joy peaked as a category 4 severe tropical cyclone with 10-minute sustained winds of 165 km/h, displaying a large eye roughly 50 km across surrounded by concentric eyewalls. It then slowed off the northeast coast, passing within about 100 km of Cairns before drifting southeast as high pressure built to the south. Dry air entrainment weakened the system, and after curving back to the southwest Joy crossed the coast near Townsville at 06:00 UTC on 26 December with winds near 95 km/h. It dissipated inland the following day, though its remnants delivered torrential rain across Queensland for a further two weeks.

Joy killed six people — five in river flooding and one surfer at Mackay — and caused around A$300 million in damage. Gusts to 124 km/h at Cairns downed trees, cut power, telephone and water services, and temporarily isolated the city, while a gust of 180 km/h was recorded near Green Island. A tornado in an outer rainband damaged 40 homes at Mackay. The greatest impacts came from flooding: rainfall exceeded 2 m south of Mackay, ten rivers rose sharply, and the Fitzroy River peaked at 9.30 m at Rockhampton in early January 1991 — the third highest flood since records began in 1860 — inundating 350 homes and forcing thousands to evacuate. Crop losses exceeded A$70 million and about 30,000 livestock died. The name Joy was subsequently retired.

Sources: Bureau of Meteorology report Wikipedia