page_title: Cyclone Fantala
section_title: Impact
hierarchical_section_title: Cyclone Fantala / Impact
caption_attribution_description: English: Intense Tropical Cyclone Fantala north of Mauritius at night on 21 April 2016.
context_page_description: Very Intense Tropical Cyclone Fantala was the strongest tropical cyclone of the South-West Indian Ocean in terms of sustained winds. Part of the 2015–16 cyclone season, Fantala formed on 11 April to the south of Diego Garcia, an island in the central Indian Ocean. With a ridge to the south, the storm moved westward for several days while gaining strength, aided by warm waters and decreasing wind shear. Late on 17 April, the Météo-France office on Réunion estimated peak 10-minute winds of 250 km/h, making Fantala the strongest tropical cyclone of the basin in terms of 10-minute sustained winds. The Joint Typhoon Warning Center estimated peak 1-minute winds of 285 km/h, equivalent to Category 5 intensity on the Saffir-Simpson scale, also the strongest on record in the South-West Indian Ocean, in terms of maximum sustained wind speed. Early on 18 April, Fantala reached its peak intensity, with a minimum central pressure of 910 millibars.
  While near peak intensity, Fantala passed near the Farquhar Group of the Seychelles, damaging most of the buildings in the small archipelago.
context_section_description: Cyclone Fantala first threatened Agaléga, part of the Outer Islands of Mauritius. Government officials forced all 72 residents on the South Island to evacuate to the North Island, and strongly advised fishermen to avoid sailing.
  Fantala was the first tropical cyclone to threaten the Farquhar Group since Cyclone Bondo in 2006. Most of the 34 residents on Farquhar Atoll evacuated ahead of the storm, and those that remained behind were uninjured. While moving through the Seychelles near peak intensity, Fantala had estimated 10-minute sustained winds of 250 km/h (155 mph), and days later it moved through the region again with 10-minute sustained winds estimated at 130 km/h (80 mph). Based on satellite imagery, it was estimated that of the 50 structures on Farquhar Atoll, 19 were destroyed and 27 sustained severe damage. Only four buildings, which were constructed to be cyclone-proof after Bondo, withstood the estimated 350 km/h (220 mph) gusts, even then suffering moderate damage. In addition, many of the island's trees were knocked down. Due to the storm's prolonged passage through the island group, the Seychelles government declared the Farquhar islands as a disaster area on 20 April. In a visit to the Seychelles, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated that the country has become "highly vulnerable to storm surges, as we are reminded by the recent devastating effects of Cyclone Fantala." A World Bank survey team found $4.5 million in damage. The lodge on the island was not expected to be rebuilt until March 2017, about 11 months after the storm. In April 2017, the development of two new islands in Farquhar's lagoon was attributed to the cyclone.
  The remnants of Fantala spurred warnings from the Tanzania Meteorological Agency after the storm produced heavy rainfall. In Kilimanjaro Region, the rains caused flooding that covered roads and entered houses, trapping hundreds of residents and killing eight. Officials required helicopters from nearby Kilimanjaro National Park to rescue residents. Five people were killed in the country's Morogoro Region, all drowning in flooded rivers. The overflowing Umba River isolated several villages. In the region, 13,933 people were left homeless after 315 houses were washed away. Flooding also washed away 12,073 ha (29,830 acres) of crop fields, prompting officials to purchase and distribute maize, beans, and cooking oil to affected residents. The storm also sent a plume of moisture northward to Kenya, where storm-influenced rainfall reached 133 mm (5.2 in) in Kwale in just four hours. This resulted in flooding in coastal portions of Kenya that destroyed several houses. About 10,000 ha (25,000 acres) of crop fields were flooded. The port and several roads were closed in the city of Mombasa, Kenya's second-largest city.
caption: Fantala near its secondary peak intensity late on 21 April
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