Severe Tropical Cyclone Cody was a strong tropical cyclone in the South Pacific which caused widespread damage in Fiji. The second tropical cyclone and first severe tropical cyclone of the 2021–22 South Pacific cyclone season, Cody was first noted by the Fiji Meteorological Service (FMS) on 5 January as Tropical Disturbance 03F. The tropical depression killed one person, and over 4,500 people were evacuated. On 10 January, the system was upgraded to a Category 1 tropical cyclone by the FMS, receiving the name Cody. While the FMS recorded a peak intensity of 130 km/h (80 mph), the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) only recorded a peak intensity of 95 km/h (60 mph). Cody was the first tropical cyclone in 2022.
Extratropical cyclone, remnant low, tropical disturbance, or monsoon depression
A satellite image of the Hunga Tonga eruption with the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Cody to its southwest late on 15 January.
The origins of Cyclone Cody can be traced back to an area of low pressure near the Fijian dependency of Rotuma late on 3 January.[1] Two days later, on 5 January, the Fiji Meteorological Service (FMS) began tracking the system, now located about 640 km (400 mi) to the north of Nadi, Fiji, and designated it as Tropical Disturbance 03F. At the time, it was embedded within a trough, with cloud bands associated to the South Pacific convergence zone wrapping into the system, while under an environment of moderate to strong divergence, low to moderate wind shear, and good outflow.[2] Later that day, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) began monitoring the disturbance, although increasing shear slowed its development.[3] Over the next few days, it tracked southwest under 29–30 °C (84–86 °F) sea surface temperatures, with flaring deep convection wrapping to its centre.[4][5] At 00:00 UTC on 8 January, the FMS upgraded 03F to a tropical depression, as cooling cloud tops wrapped over its centre from the northern side.[6] At the same time, the JTWC upgraded 03F to a tropical storm;[7] operationally, they issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) 14 hours later, due to gale-force winds developing over the eastern side of the system,[8] before issuing advisories on the storm at 21:00 UTC the same day.[9] Turning eastward within a competing steering pattern between the near-equatorial ridge to its northeast and the subtropical ridge to its south, it briefly weakened to a tropical depression by 9 January, as dry air hindered the development of its centre,[10][11] before the JTWC reupgraded it to a tropical storm at 06:00 UTC.[7] During the day, 03F passed within 180 km (110 mi) to the southwest of Nadi.[12]
At 18:00 UTC that same day, as it turned to the southwest along the periphery of the subtropical ridge to its south, the FMS reported that 03F intensified to a Category 1 tropical cyclone on the Australian tropical cyclone scale, and named it as Cody.[13] Cody's centre remained exposed throughout 10 January, as dry air intruded the system's core.[14] By the next day, convection began to reform over its centre, signaling the system's reintensification.[15] At 06:00 UTC, Cody intensified into a category 2 tropical cyclone, as ragged convection began to wrap around its centre.[16][17] By 12 January, at 00:00 UTC, Cody reached its peak intensity, as it became a category 3 severe tropical cyclone with 10-minute sustained winds of 70 kn (130 km/h; 80 mph).[18] The JTWC estimated the system to have 1-minute sustained winds of 60 kn (110 km/h; 70 mph), just shy of a hurricane-equivalent cyclone on the Saffir-Simpson scale.[7] At the time of its peak intensity, Cody developed a 74-kilometre-wide (46 mi) banding eye, as it moved into an environment of lowering sea surface temperatures and increasing shear.[19]
Its peak intensity was short-lived because 12 hours later, Cody weakened to a category 2 tropical cyclone due to a dry air intrusion from the west, along with strong shear as it turned to the southeast.[20][21] Cody further weakened to a category 1 tropical cyclone by 18:00 UTC, before the FMS passed the responsibility of issuing warnings to the New Zealand MetService, as it left their area of responsibility by the next day.[22][23] As it left the FMS's area of responsibility, the system's centre became broad and fully exposed, with convection sheared to the southeast.[24] At 15:00 UTC, the JTWC issued their final advisory on Cody, as it transitioned to a subtropical low.[25] The MetService then reclassified Cody as a gale-force low 3 hours later.[26] The remnants of the system continued southeast, passing near New Zealand by 17 January,[27] before being last noted late on the same day as a gale-force low to the north of the Chatham Islands.[28]
Preparations and impact
Fiji
As the precursor system began to form near Fiji, the FMS issued a heavy rain alert for Vanua Levu, Taveuni and nearby islands, and the Lau and Lomaiviti group of islands on 4 January.[29] By the next day, the alert was expanded to include all of Fiji,[30] before a heavy rain warning was issued to the same initial areas early on 6 January.[31] As it became a tropical disturbance on 8 January, the FMS issued a severe flood alert for low-lying areas near major rivers in Viti Levu.[32] By the afternoon, a flood warning was issued for the towns of Rakiraki, Tavua and Ba,[33] alongside flash flood warnings in most of Fiji, and tropical cyclone alerts for Yasawa and Mamanuca group of islands, northern and western Viti Levu, Kadavu, and western and northwestern Vanua Levu.[34]
One person was killed as a result of the cyclone,[35] with over 4,500 people evacuated in Fiji.[36]
^Fiji Climate Summary: January 2022 Volume 43 Issue 1 (PDF) (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 7 February 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 March 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
^Tropical Disturbance Summary for area Equator to 25S, 160E to 120W issued from RSMC Nadi Jan 050954 UTC (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 5 January 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
^Significant Tropical Weather Advisory for the Western and South Pacific Oceans, 2030Z 5 January 2022 Reissued (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 5 January 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
^Significant Tropical Weather Advisory for the Western and South Pacific Oceans, 0600Z 6 January 2022 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 6 January 2022. Archived from the original on 6 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
^Significant Tropical Weather Advisory for the Western and South Pacific Oceans, 0600Z 7 January 2022 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 7 January 2022. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
^Tropical Disturbance Advisory Number A1 issued from RSMC Nadi Jan 080210 UTC (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 8 January 2022. Archived from the original on 9 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^ abc"JTWC 2022 best track analysis: Tropical Cyclone 05P: Cody" (DAT). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 19 August 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (Invest 99P) (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 8 January 2022. Archived from the original on 8 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
^Tropical Cyclone 05P (Five) Warning No. 1 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 8 January 2022. Archived from the original on 8 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Cyclone 05P (Five) Warning No. 2 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 9 January 2022. Archived from the original on 9 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Cyclone 05P (Five) Warning No. 3 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 9 January 2022. Archived from the original on 9 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^Special Weather Bulletin for Fiji Number 09 issued at 10:45 pm on Sunday the 9th of January 2022 (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 9 January 2022. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Tropical Disturbance Advisory Number A8 issued from RSMC Nadi Jan 092030 UTC (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 9 January 2022. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Cyclone 05P (Cody) Warning No. 7 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 10 January 2022. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Cyclone 05P (Cody) Warning No. 10 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 11 January 2022. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^Tropical Disturbance Advisory Number A14 issued from RSMC Nadi Jan 110750 UTC (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 11 January 2022. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Cyclone 05P (Cody) Warning No. 11 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 11 January 2022. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^Tropical Disturbance Advisory Number A16 issued from RSMC Nadi Jan 120153 UTC (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Cyclone 05P (Cody) Warning No. 14 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^Tropical Disturbance Advisory Number A18 issued from RSMC Nadi Jan 121355 UTC (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Cyclone 05P (Cody) Warning No. 16 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^Tropical Disturbance Advisory Number A19 issued from RSMC Nadi Jan 121915 UTC (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Gale Warning 049 for Subtropic 130041 (Report). New Zealand MetService. 13 January 2022. Archived from the original on 13 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Cyclone 05P (Cody) Warning No. 18 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 13 January 2022. Archived from the original on 13 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^Tropical Cyclone 05P (Cody) Warning No. 20 (Report). United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 13 January 2022. Archived from the original on 13 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^Gale Warning 055 for Subtropic 131822 (Report). New Zealand MetService. 13 January 2022. Archived from the original on 13 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Gale Warning 093 for Subtropic and Forties 170521 (Report). New Zealand MetService. 17 January 2022. Archived from the original on 17 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Gale Warning 098 for Subtropic and Forties 171826 (Report). New Zealand MetService. 17 January 2022. Archived from the original on 17 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Special Weather Bulletin for Heavy Rain Number Two issued at 03.30pm on Tuesday 4th January 2022 (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 4 January 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Special Weather Bulletin for Heavy Rain Number Six issued at 03.30pm on Wednesday 5th January 2022 (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 5 January 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Special Weather Bulletin for Heavy Rain Number Nine issued at 05.30am on Thursday 6th January 2022 (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 5 January 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Special Weather Bulletin for Flood Number One issued at 06.00am Saturday 8th January 2022 (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 7 January 2022. Archived from the original on 8 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Special Weather Bulletin for Flood Number Four issued at 03.00pm Saturday 8th January 2022 (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 8 January 2022. Archived from the original on 8 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Special Weather Bulletin for Fiji Number 01 issued at 3:52pm on Saturday the 8th of January 2022 (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. 8 January 2022. Archived from the original on 8 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via MT Archive.
^Lice Monovo (9 January 2022). "Fiji cyclone: Man drowns attempting to cross flooded river". newshub.co.nz. Fiji: RNZ Pacific. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
^"Cyclone Cody forces Fiji climate refugees to take shelter at school". Radio New Zealand. 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-01-12. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
^RA V Tropical Cyclone Committee (2023). Tropical Cyclone Operational Plan for the South-East Indian Ocean and the Southern Pacific Ocean 2023 (PDF) (Report). World Meteorological Organization. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
Tropical cyclone
Subtropical cyclone
Extratropical cyclone, remnant low, tropical disturbance, or monsoon depression
