A few days ago, it was 25 years since this storm event took on unprecedented proportions. What was initially a low pressure area quickly developed into a tropical storm Then it turned into a devastating tropical cyclone, Olivia. In just a few days, this meteorological phenomenon, whose name differs according to the part of the world in which it occurs (hurricane, hurricane or tropical cyclone), has caused severe damage, Especially property damage, which, of course, also led to financial losses.

The meteorological event that we remember today took place on April 10, 1996 in the Southern Hemisphere near Barrow Island, Northwest of the Pilbara coast, very close to Australia. A few days after Olivia’s formation in Indian waters, the aforementioned tropical cyclone intensified over time to the point that it produced what could be the strongest hurricane storm. Recorded on our planet.

What causes tropical cyclones like Olivia?

Hurricanes are a very destructive climate phenomenon that kills thousands every year. They form in areas of low pressure below 950 mbar. It has a tremendous vertical development and generates down currents with average speeds of over 120 km / h. Its constant speed is often 250 km / h, with gusts that can reach 360 km / h.

As these destructive forces of nature wipe out everything in their path, from uprooted trees to destroying infrastructure to the unfortunate loss of many human lives, torrential rain floods large areas, Which can hit the coastal areas hard due to the dangerous waves that accompany it.

Tropical cyclones usually start as small thunderstorms in warm tropical seas. If the water is warm enough (temperatures above 24 ° C), many storms can form and coalesce into a single vortex, propelled by strong winds at high altitudes. Later they drift west across the sea, absorbing the warm, moist air and circulating in more tight circles. Its diameter is between 600 and 800 km and its height is about 12 km.

When hurricanes reach land, they lose their strength dramatically due to the reduced flow of moisture and friction between the depression and the Earth’s surface. Accumulated daily precipitation can exceed 800 mm. Hurricanes can reach areas of 100 km in diameter around the “eye” of the hurricane – the low pressure circuit at the center of the storm.

Split hurricanes It occurs through different degrees of severity And one of the scales most used to evaluate and classify these strong natural phenomena is the Saffir-Simpson scale, which ranges from F0 (weak) to F1 (moderate), F2 (important), F3 (severe), F4 (destructive)), F5 (incredible). , F6 (unimaginable) enough.

What happened on Barrow Island?

The strongest hurricane storm in meteorological history hit Barrow Island, hitting one of them An impressive value of 408 km / h Arrive! However, no deaths were recorded in Australia. The most prominent accident was recorded in the city of Panañica, in which a person was injured by a flying sliver of glass and had to be airlifted to medical care. There were also nine other people Who was slightly injured.

Olivia was the strongest storm of the 1995/96 season on the northwestern Australian shelf. The damage was enormous. Because of the enormous wind force The oil and gas infrastructure has been severely damaged in the regionEven the power column has been completely destroyed. The intensity of this tropical cyclone was increased by its extremely low central pressure (925 hPa), velocity up to 113 m / s and its elliptical shape, which contributed to its prolonged expansion.

The previous world record goes back to Mount Washington, New Hampshire (USA), which had a maximum wind gust of 371 km / h on April 12, 1934 at an altitude of 1916 meters. Was measured.