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Cyclone Peter

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Severe Tropical Cyclone Peter
Cyclone Peter near peak intensity on 31 December
Meteorological history
Formed28 December 1978
Dissipated3 January 1979
Category 3 severe tropical cyclone
10-minute sustained(BOM)
Highest winds150 km/h (90 mph)
Lowest pressure980hPa(mbar); 28.94inHg
Tropical storm
1-minute sustained(SSHWS/JTWC)
Highest winds110 km/h (70 mph)
Lowest pressure980hPa(mbar); 28.94inHg
Overall effects
Fatalities2 total
Damage$11.4 million (1978USD)
Areas affectedNorthern Territory,Far North Queensland
IBTrACSEdit this at Wikidata
Part of the1978–79 Australian region cyclone season

Severe Tropical Cyclone Peterwas at the time, thewettesttropical cycloneon record inAustralia,until it was surpassed byCyclone Jasperin 2023. The third system and first severe tropical cyclone of the1978–79 season,Peter developed on 29 December from a weak low pressure area over theGulf of Carpentaria.Peter moved southeastward and deepened while brushingArnhem Land.Initially a tropical low, it strengthened into a Category 1 cyclone by 12:00 UTC on 29 December. Peter intensified further on 30 December and became a Category 2 cyclone. On the following day, the cyclone peaked with maximum sustained winds of 110 km/h (70 mph). Peter weakened to a Category 1 cyclone before making landfall near the mouth of theEdward RiverinQueensland.While crossing theCape York Peninsula,the storm weakened slowly. After reaching Pacific Ocean nearCooktown,the storm decelerated and meandered offshore, but dissipated just offshore on 4 January.

While trekking slowly offshore the east coast of Queensland, the storm dropped very heavy rainfall, peaking at 1,947 millimetres (76.7 in) atMount Bellenden Ker,making it the wettest tropical cyclone on record in Australia at the time. Severe flooding occurred, especially in theCairnsarea. The most severe damage was dealt tosugar cane,which suffered 70 to 90 percent destruction. Some flights were canceled at theCairns Airportdue to standing water. Floodwaters forced at least 50 people to flee their homes in Cairns. A number of roads, including major highways, were flooded throughout coastal areas ofFar North Queensland.Rainfall and winds also resulted in many power and telephone service outages through the region. There were two fatalities and damage reached approximately $10 million (1979AUD;$11.4 million 1979USD).

Meteorological history

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Map plotting the storm's track and intensity, according to the Saffir–Simpson scale
Map key
Saffir–Simpson scale
Tropical depression (≤38 mph, ≤62 km/h)
Tropical storm (39–73 mph, 63–118 km/h)
Category 1 (74–95 mph, 119–153 km/h)
Category 2 (96–110 mph, 154–177 km/h)
Category 3 (111–129 mph, 178–208 km/h)
Category 4 (130–156 mph, 209–251 km/h)
Category 5 (≥157 mph, ≥252 km/h)
Unknown
Storm type
triangleExtratropical cyclone,remnant low, tropical disturbance, or monsoon depression

During the final week of December 1978, an area ofatmospheric convectiondeveloped over northern Australia and surrounding areas.[1]During 28 December, an area of low pressure developed over the easternArnhem Landwithin this area of atmospheric convection.[1]Over the next day the system moved northwestward toward theGulf of Carpentariaand developed further, with the first gale force wind associated with the system reported from an automatic weather station on 29 December.[1]The system was subsequently named Peter by the AustralianBureau of Meteorology(BoM)after it moved into the Gulf and developed into a Category 1 tropical cyclone on theAustralian tropical cyclone intensity scale.[2]After being named, Peter continued to intensify further as it tracked southeastward toward theCape York Peninsula.[2]

The system was subsequently considered to have peaked as a Category 2 tropical cyclone on 31 December, with 10-minute sustained winds estimated at 110 km/h (70 mph) by the BoM.[2]Several hours later, the system made landfall betweenAurukunand theEdward River mission,Queensland,at around 20:00 (Australian Eastern Standard Time,11:00UTC).[3]As Peter made landfall during 31 December winds of 120 km/h (75 mph), were reported from bothFitzroy Islandand the Edward River mission weather stations.[1]Over the next couple of days the system gradually weakened over land, before it emerged into the Coral Sea nearCooktown, Queensland,on 1 January.[4]The system subsequently weakened below tropical cyclone intensity and became a tropical low during 2 January.[5]The system was last noted on the following day as it degenerated into a complex low pressure system and moved back over theCape York Peninsula.[4][6]The complex low subsequently moved westwards over the Peninsula and into the Gulf, where it developed intoTropical Cyclone Greta.[7]

Impact

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Wettest tropical cyclones and their remnants in Australia
Highest-known totals
Precipitation Storm Location Ref.
Rank mm in
1 2,252 88.66 Jasper 2023 Bairds [8]
2 1,947 76.65 Peter 1979 Mount Bellenden Ker [9]
3 1,870 73.62 Rona 1999 Mount Bellenden Ker [9]
4 1,318 51.89 Wanda 1974 Mount Glorious [10]
5 1,256.8 49.48 Fletcher 2014 Kowanyama [11][12]
6 1,082 42.60 Aivu 1989 Dalrymple Heights [13]
7 1,065 41.93 May 1998 Burketown [14]
8 1,000 39.37 Justin 1997 Willis Island [15]
9 1,000 39.37 Ellie 2009 [16]
10 1,000 39.37 Oswald 2013 Tully [17]

TheDarwinTropical Cyclone Warning Centre(TCWC) inNorthern Territoryissued acyclone warningon 30 December for the coast of Arnhem Land from theWessel Islandsto Port Roper, located near the mouth of theRoper River.[18]Although a cyclone warning indicates expectation of landfall,[19]Peter would never strike Northern Territory.[1]The strongest observed winds in the territory was 74 km/h (46 mph) on Northeast Island, while the highest precipitation total was 140 millimetres (5.5 in) inNhulunbuy,107 mm (4.2 in) of which fell in 24 hours. Very rough seas were reported along the coast of some areas, beaching a 12 m (39 ft) fishing vessel onto the rocks atGove harbour.[2]

In Queensland, theBrisbaneTCWC issued cyclone watches and flood warnings as the storm passed over the Cape York Peninsula.[20]Some areas experienced strong winds, with gusts up to 110 km/h (68 mph) at Edward River Aboriginal Mission andFitzroy Island.[1]The storm dropped very heavy rainfall while drifting offshore Queensland, withMount Bellenden Kerrecording 1,947 mm (76.7 in) over a period of approximately three days, making Peter thewettest tropical cyclonein Australia at the time.[21]The record precipitation total was surpassed byCyclone Jasperin December 2023, which dropped 2,252 mm (88.7 in) over a seven day period.[22]In a 24 hour period, Peter dropped about 1,140 mm (45 in) of rainfall, which was the country's highest daily rainfall total. Other significant precipitation amounts included 433 mm (17.0 in) inMillaa Millaaand 402 mm (15.8 in) in Cooktown.[1]

Due to the heavy rainfall, severe flooding occurred, mostly betweenTullyand Cooktown, with the worst impact in theCairnsarea.[1]Many creeks and rivers, such as theHerbert,the north and south branches of theJohnstone,and McLeod rivers overflowed or reached dangerous levels. Much of the damage inNorth Queenslandoccurred to newly plantedsugar cane,with approximately 70 to 90 percent of area's crop destroyed. Twenty growers inGoondieach lost between $20,000 to $30,000 in sugar cane. Damage to this crop was comparable to the floods in 1977.[23]In total, the storm destroyed 270,000 to 315,000 tonnes of sugar cane.[24]

Standing water atCairns AirportledAnsett Australiato cancel some flights. Portions of many roads, including major highways such as theBruce,Captain Cook,Gillies,[20]andKennedyhighways were reported by theRoyal Automobile Clubas closed due to inundation and washouts.[23]Many motorists were left stranded by floodwaters on Bruce Highway.[20]Emergency personnel crews were put on standby inInnisfailas water up to 60 cm (24 in) threatened dozens of homes in the eastern part of town.[20]In Cairns, over 50 people fled their homes.[25]On 5 January, theCoast Guard of Australiabegan evacuating some 160 stranded campers in areas about 140 km (85 mi) north ofMossman.Foods shortages occurred in some areas ofFar North Queensland,forcing several emergency food drops, including to about 250 people on 4 January and 70 people on 5 January. Additionally, a policeman was winched by helicopter to deliver food supplies to 10 isolated people on 7 January in Goldsborough, which is located in theGillies Rangeto the west ofGordonvale.Overall, Peter left two fatalities and about $10 million (1979AUD) in damage, at least $4.5 million of which was done to sugar cane inBabinda,Innisfail, and Tully.[23]

After the storm, theGovernment of Queenslanddeclared the Cairns area as a natural disaster area. About week later, theCabinetsupported a measure by Minister for Primary Industries, Vic Sullivan, to offer low-interest loans to farmer who lost significant amounts of crops and livestock.[3]Later,Queensland PremierJoh Bjelke-Petersenrequested aid from thenational government.Prime MinisterMalcolm Fraserapproved low-interest loans up to $25,000 (1979 AUD) for small businesses and the implementation of other measures for recovery.[26]

See also

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References

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  1. ^abcdefghTropical Cyclone Peter: 29 December 1978 – 2 January 1979(Report). Australian Bureau of Meteorology.Archivedfrom the original on 28 January 2016.Retrieved14 January2016.
  2. ^abcdTropical Cyclone Peter: December 29 – 31, 1978(Report). Australian Bureau of Meteorology.Archivedfrom the original on 28 January 2016.Retrieved23 January2016.
  3. ^abChristopher Salisbury.Cabinet Minutes 1979 – Selected Highlights(PDF)(Report). Brisbane, Queensland:Government of Queensland.p. 1.Retrieved14 January2016.
  4. ^ab"Australian Tropical Cyclone Database"(CSV).Australian Bureau of Meteorology. 30 June 2023.Retrieved30 June2023.A guide on how to read the database is availablehere.
  5. ^"Telephones, roads cut by cyclone".The Canberra Times.3 January 1979. p. 3.Retrieved25 January2016.
  6. ^"Flooding, food shortages in north Qld".The Canberra Times.4 January 1979. p. 3.Retrieved25 January2016.
  7. ^L. W. Broadbridge (1 September 1979)."The Australian Tropical Cyclone Season 1978–79"(PDF).Australian Meteorological Magazine.Australian Bureau of Meteorology.Retrieved1 January2016.
  8. ^Bureau of Meteorology.Heavy rainfall and major flooding in Far North Queensland.Retrieved on 19 December 2023.
  9. ^ab"Climate Education: Flood".Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Archived fromthe originalon 17 March 2009.Retrieved18 January2011.
  10. ^Bureau of Meteorology.Tropical Cyclones in Queensland.Retrieved on 17 July 2015.
  11. ^"Tropical Cyclone Fletcher Impacts".Bureau of Meteorology.Government of Australia. 2014.Retrieved5 March2014.
  12. ^"Kowanyama, Queensland February 2014 Daily Weather Observations"(PDF).Bureau of Meteorology.Government of Australia. 2014. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 6 March 2014.Retrieved6 March2014.
  13. ^"Report on Severe Tropical Cyclone Aivu: Rainfall"(PDF).Bureau of Meteorology.Government of Australia. 6 June 1990. p. 17–18.Retrieved13 March2014.
  14. ^"Tropical Cyclone May".Australian Bureau of Meteorology. 2013.Retrieved29 January2013.
  15. ^Queensland Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre (2014)."Tropical Cyclone Justin"(PDF).Australian Bureau of Meteorology.Retrieved11 March2014.
  16. ^"Tropical Cyclone Ellie".Australian Bureau of Meteorology. 2009.Retrieved27 January2013.
  17. ^Williams, Brian; Michael, Peter (24 January 2013)."Ex-cyclone Oswald heads south with heavy rain tipped for long weekend".The Courier Mail.Australian Associated Press. Archived fromthe originalon 24 January 2013.Retrieved24 January2013.
  18. ^"Ship caught in cyclone".The Canberra Times.Darwin, Northern Territory. 31 December 1978. p. 3.Retrieved15 January2016.
  19. ^"Tropical Cyclone Warning Advice".Bureau of Meteorology.Retrieved15 January2016.
  20. ^abcd"Telephone, roads cut by cyclone".The Canberra Times.Brisbane, Queensland. 3 January 1979. p. 3.Retrieved14 January2016.
  21. ^Australia's Record Rainfall(Report). Bureau of Meteorology.Retrieved23 January2016.
  22. ^"Tropical Cyclone Jasper: December 2023".JBA Risk Management.Retrieved25 January2024.
  23. ^abc"Damage to sugar cane 'in millions'".The Canberra Times.Brisbane, Queensland. 7 January 1979. p. 3.Retrieved14 January2016.
  24. ^"North Queensland cane losses estimated".South African Sugar Journal.63.Cornell University: 5. 1979.ISSN0038-2728.Retrieved14 January2016.
  25. ^"Flooding, food shortages in north Qld".The Canberra Times.Brisbane, Queensland. 4 January 1979. p. 3.Retrieved15 January2016.
  26. ^"Commonwealth Assistance to Queensland in Respect of Cyclone Peter".Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.18 January 1979. Archived fromthe originalon 29 January 2016.Retrieved14 January2016.
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