The country of Australia regularly experiences the damaging and deadly effects of tropical cyclones each year, primarily in the states of Queensland, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory. Each year on average, four tropical cyclones strike the country, and can occur as early as November or as late as May. Australia's Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) classifies warnings on a scale from one to five, with five as the strongest. The most recent Category 5 cyclone to make landfall in the country was Cyclone Ilsa in April 2023. The most recent cyclone to make landfall was a Category 5 cyclone called Cyclone Narelle which hit Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia in March 2026.

Background, climatology, and records

Each year on average, four tropical cyclones make landfall in Australia. The country's cyclone season lasts from November to April. On 21 November 1973, Cyclone Ines became the earliest seasonal landfall in the country in the satellite era. One of the latest storms in a season to affect the country was Cyclone Herbie, which hit Shark Bay, Western Australia, on 21 May, 1988.

Australia's Bureau of Meteorology issues warnings on tropical cyclones, naming them when the cyclone attains gale-force winds. The agency also classifies storms using the Australian tropical cyclone intensity scale, with the strongest being a Category 5 on the scale.

Cyclone Mahina struck Bathurst Bay along Cape York Peninsula as a Category 5 cyclone. The cyclone wrecked four schooners, killing 307 people and becoming the deadliest on record in Australia. While moving ashore, the cyclone produced a storm surge of .

On 10 April 1996, Cyclone Olivia moved over Barrow Island of Western Australia and produced the strongest non-tornadic winds ever recorded on Earth, with peak gusts of . The BoM was initially unsure of the veracity of the reading, although a team at the 1999 Offshore Technology Conference presented the reading as the highest wind gust on Earth.

States

Northern Territory

Name Category Date of landfall Year Adeline 1973 Wilma 1975 Kim 1976 Tracy 1974 Rosa 1979 Doris 1980 Ferdinand 1984 Jim 1984 Kathy 1984 Sandy 1985 Gretel 1985 Phil 1996 Sid 1997 Les 1998 Thelma 1998 Steve 2000 Winsome 2001 Wylva 2001 Abigail 2001 Craig 2003 Debbie 2003 Fritz 2004 Monty 2004 Evan 2004 Harvey 2005 Ingrid 2005 Monica 2006 Helen 2008 Paul 2010 Grant 2011 Alessia 2013 Lam 2015 Nathan 2015 Marcus 2018 Owen 2018 Trevor 2019 Tiffany 2022 Ellie 2022 Lincoln 2024 Megan 2024 Fina 2025 Narelle 2026

Queensland

Name Category Date of landfall Year Ada 1970 Althea 1971 Daisy 1972 Emily 1972 Madge 1973 Wanda 1974 Yvonne 1974 David 1976 Beth 1976 Dawn 1976 Ted 1977 Otto 1977 Gwen 1978 Hal 1978 Peter 1978 Greta 1979 Kerry 1979 Stan 1979 Cliff 1981 Cliff 1981 Dominic 1982 Pierre 1985 Rebecca 1985 Tanya 1985 Winifred 1986 Manu 1986 Jason 1987 Charlie 1988 Aivu 1989 Felicity 1990 Joy 1991 Mark 1992 Fran 1993 Mahina 1899 Sadie 1994 Warren 1995 Barry 1996 Ethel 1997 Justin 1997 May 1998 Rona 1999 Steve 2000 Tessi 2000 Ingrid 2005 Larry 2006 Monica 2006 Nelson 2007 Charlotte 2009 Ellie 2009 Olga 2010 Ului 2010 Tasha 2010 Anthony 2011 Yasi 2011 Oswald 2013 Dylan 2014 Ita 2014 Marcia 2015 Nathan 2015 Debbie 2017 Nora 2018 Owen 2018 Penny 2019 Trevor 2019 Esther 2020 Imogen 2021 Tiffany 2022 Jasper 2023 Kirrily 2025 Alfred 2025 Koji 2026 Narelle 2026

Western Australia

Name Category Date of landfall Year Kerry 1973 Marcelle 1973 Ines 1973 Erica 1973 Fiona 1974 Trixie 1975 Beverly 1975 Joan 1975 Wally 1976 Leo 1977 Vern 1978 Hazel 1979 Amy 1980 Dean 1980 Enid 1980 Bruno 1982 Graham 1982 Ian 1982 Jane 1983 Ken 1983 Lena 1983 Quenton 1983 Chloe 1984 Frank 1985 Gertie 1985 Lindsay 1985 Hector 1986 Connie 1987 Elsie 1987 Ilona 1988 Orson 1989 Tina 1990 Ian 1992 Naomi 1993 Annette 1994 Bobby 1995 Chloe 1995 Gertie 1995 Kirsty 1996 Olivia 1996 Rachel 1997 Les 1998 Vance 1999 Gwenda 1999 Ilsa 1999 John 1999 Steve 2000 Vance 2000 Rosita 2000 Sam 2000 Terri 2001 Chris 2002 Graham 2003 Fay 2004 Raymond 2005 Ingrid 2005 Clare 2006 Emma 2006 Glenda 2006 Hubert 2006 George 2007 Nicholas 2008 Billy 2008 Dominic 2009 Laurence 2009 Magda 2010 Carlos 2011 Heidi 2012 Lua 2012 Rusty 2013 Christine 2013 Olwyn 2015 Stan 2016 Blanche 2017 Unnamed 2017 Hilda 2017 Joyce 2018 Kelvin 2018 Blake 2020 Damien 2020 Seroja 2021 Anika 2022 Ilsa 2023 Zelia 2025 Dianne 2025 Fina 2025 Hayley 2025 Luana 2026 Narelle 2026

See also

Tropical cyclone effects by region

References