Zelia
2010-11 season · AU201011_10U
History
Severe Tropical Cyclone Zelia developed in mid-February 2025 from a tropical low that formed near the Kimberley region of Western Australia, within a monsoon trough, around 7 February. The system organised slowly as it moved southwest before being named Zelia by the Bureau of Meteorology on 11 February. It then underwent a period of extreme rapid intensification, escalating through Categories 2, 3, and 4 before reaching Category 5 status on 13 February — becoming the first Category 5 cyclone of the 2024–25 Australian region season. At its peak, Zelia produced 10-minute sustained winds of 115 knots (215 km/h) and 1-minute sustained winds of 130 knots (240 km/h).
Turning southeast, the cyclone weakened to Category 3 intensity before making landfall near the De Grey River, northeast of Port Hedland, at around midday AWST on 14 February, with 10-minute sustained winds of 95 knots and a central pressure of 935 hPa. It rapidly weakened to a tropical low after moving inland and soon dissipated.
The storm caused extensive damage across the Pilbara and Kimberley regions. Flash flooding affected the De Grey and Pardoo areas, with some stations recording over 500 millimetres of rainfall across three days. Ports at Port Hedland, Cape Lambert, and Dampier were closed for three days, disrupting iron ore shipping and offshore energy operations. Dozens of residents were evacuated from remote communities. Total economic losses reached approximately US$733 million, though no fatalities were recorded. The name Zelia was subsequently retired and replaced with Zhu.
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology report Wikipedia
View full track data (25 observations)
| Date/Time (UTC) | Category | Position | Pressure | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-01-12 18:00:00 | 1 | -15.1, 150.2 | 1000 hPa | 10 km/h |
| 2011-01-13 00:00:00 | 1 | -14.3, 150.2 | 1000 hPa | 10 km/h |
| 2011-01-13 06:00:00 | 1 | -13.7, 149.8 | 995 hPa | 13 km/h |
| 2011-01-13 12:00:00 | 1 | -13.0, 150.0 | 994 hPa | 13 km/h |
| 2011-01-13 18:00:00 | 1 | -12.5, 150.4 | 995 hPa | 15 km/h |
| 2011-01-14 00:00:00 | 1 | -12.4, 150.9 | 992 hPa | 18 km/h |
| 2011-01-14 06:00:00 | 1 | -12.6, 151.5 | 992 hPa | 18 km/h |
| 2011-01-14 12:00:00 | 1 | -13.1, 151.8 | 990 hPa | 18 km/h |
| 2011-01-14 18:00:00 | 1 | -13.8, 151.9 | 988 hPa | 21 km/h |
| 2011-01-15 00:00:00 | 1 | -14.5, 152.1 | 989 hPa | 23 km/h |
| 2011-01-15 06:00:00 | 1 | -15.1, 152.5 | 985 hPa | 26 km/h |
| 2011-01-15 12:00:00 | 1 | -15.6, 153.3 | 977 hPa | 31 km/h |
| 2011-01-15 18:00:00 | 1 | -16.4, 155.0 | 977 hPa | 33 km/h |
| 2011-01-16 00:00:00 | 1 | -17.5, 156.8 | 964 hPa | 41 km/h |
| 2011-01-16 04:00:00 | 1 | -18.5, 158.1 | 943 hPa | 51 km/h |
| 2011-01-16 06:00:00 | 1 | -19.1, 158.8 | 944 hPa | 51 km/h |
| 2011-01-16 10:00:00 | 1 | -20.1, 160.0 | 943 hPa | 51 km/h |
| 2011-01-16 12:00:00 | 1 | -20.6, 160.6 | 957 hPa | 44 km/h |
| 2011-01-16 18:00:00 | 1 | -22.6, 162.8 | 970 hPa | 41 km/h |
| 2011-01-17 00:00:00 | 1 | -25.0, 165.0 | 975 hPa | 36 km/h |
| 2011-01-17 06:00:00 | 1 | -27.5, 167.5 | 975 hPa | 31 km/h |
| 2011-01-17 12:00:00 | 1 | -30.2, 168.7 | 980 hPa | 28 km/h |
| 2011-01-17 18:00:00 | 1 | -32.9, 169.3 | 990 hPa | 23 km/h |
| 2011-01-18 00:00:00 | 1 | -36.1, 169.9 | 988 hPa | 23 km/h |
| 2011-01-18 06:00:00 | 1 | -40.0, 172.0 | 987 hPa | 21 km/h |