NEW!

MYSELF AND JAMES REYNOLDS

FROM TYPHOONFURY.COM DOCUMENT DARWIN'S

CYCLONE.

TROPICAL CYCLONE CARLOS FORMED IN THE WEE HOURS OF FEBRUARY 15 TO CAT1 STATUS.  HE WAS VERY SLOW MOVING AND ALTHOUGH HAD GOOD DEVELOPMENT HE WAS GOING TO STRUGGLE WHILST HUGGING THE COAST AND NOT VENTURING OUT INTO OPEN WATER WHICH WOULD HAVE GIVEN HIM THE FUEL TO RAMP UP.  DEVELOPING WINDS WERE GOOD, WITH WIND SPEEDS BETWEEN 60-90KM/H SUSTAINED DURING THE NIGHT OF 15/16TH FEB.  

JAMES REYNOLDS WAS HERE IN DARWIN TO CHASE THUNDERSTORMS WITH ME AND TRY AND GET SOME NICE LIGHTNING BUT AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT, FOR A TYPHOON CHASER, A CYCLONE DIRECTLY OVER DARWIN WAS PAYDAY FOR HIM.  JAMES HAS BEEN FILMING TYPHOONS FOR ABOUT THREE YEARS PROFESSIONALLY AND ALSO DOCUMENTS VOLCANO ACTIVITY IN THE INDO-PACIFIC REGION AND IS A VIDEOGRAPHER SUPPLYING FOOTAGE FOR CNN WORLDWIDE.

 CHASING CARLOS WAS LIMITED DUE TO HEAVY RAIN PERIODS AND FINDING SOME SORT OF COVER PROVED A HANDFUL, BUT JAMES AND MYSELF VENTURED OUT DURING THE DAY TO DOCUMENT SOME FOOTAGE OF THE CYCLONE'S MAYHEM.  A LOT OF TREES WERE DOWNED DUE TO THE PREVIOUS 5 WEEKS OF MONSOONAL RAINS THAT HAD LASHED DARWIN AND SURROUNDS.  INUNDATION OF LOW LYING SUBURBS SUCH AS RAPID CREEK RESULTED IN HOUSES BEING FLOODED, RAPID CREEK OVERFLOWING ONTO ROADWAYS AND CUTTING OFF SEVERAL ARTERIAL HIGHWAYS IN THE AREA.

OVER 645MM OF RAIN HAD FALLEN DURING THE THREE DAYS FORECASTED AND MANY RURAL TOWNSHIPS ARE/WERE CUT OFF.  THE AHRNEM HWY, COX PENNINSULAR ROAD, BATCHELOR WERE  AFFECTED WITH MAY RIVERS SET TO RISE DURING THE LATTER STAGES OF EX-CARLOS DURING THE WEEK OF FEB 17-19.

RADAR AND DOPPLER GRAPHICS SHOW PROGRESS DURING CARLOS'S LIFECYCLE AND IMAGES INCLUDE DAMAGE AND COASTAL 6M TIDE INFLUENCE.  CARLOS HAS NOW BEEN DOWNGRADED TO A TROPICAL LOW ONCE MORE AS OF 17FEB AS HE MOVES SW TOWARDS THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BORDER IN WHICH HE MAY TURN OUT INTO THE JOESPH BONEPART GULF AND REFORM. 

 (GRAPHICS COURTESY AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF METEOROLOGY)

15-17 FEB 2011 COMPILATION OF EVENTS

 STORM SHOTS

 17FEB MSLP CHART SHOWING EX-CARLOS TO THE SW OF DARWIN AND ANOTHER TC ON THE WESTERN COASTLINE.   SEVERE STORMS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE TROUGHS MOVING TO THE EAST ACROSS AUSTRALIA THROUGH SOUTH AUSTRALIA, VICTORIA, NSW AND SE QLD.  MONSOON TROUGH IS STILL EVIDENT THROUGH THE TROPICS AND CORAL SEA.  SO MORE RAIN FOR DARWIN IS ON THE CARDS.

THANKS TO JAMES AND JOHN REYNOLDS,  ENJOYED CHASING WITH YOU AND NEXT TIME IT WILL BE FOR OUR FAMOUS LIGHTNING!

 MORE IMAGES AS THE DAYS PROGRESS WITH ANY DAMAGE AND FLOODING RURAL