 While Eline was making landfall on Madagascar, another area of convection formed to its east on February 17 within the ITCZ. Its structure was similar to a monsoon depression, due to a large circulation with weak winds near the center. However, it was organized enough to be classified as a tropical disturbance on February 18 to the southeast of Diego Garcia. It moved southeastward with increasing convection, prompting the Mauritius Meteorological Service to name it Felicia while still as a tropical depression on February 20. The convection however remained disorganized, and there were several small circulations within the broad gyre. After turning to the southwest due to a nearby trough, Felicia's circulation became more compact, as evidenced by a QuikSCAT pass. Outflow increased as wind shear decreased, and Felicia became a moderate tropical storm on February 21. On the same day, the JTWC initiated advisories on the storm as Tropical Cyclone 12S.
