Tropical Storm Gertie (1985)
Tropical Storm Gertie peaked at 55 kt in the South Indian between January 26, 1985 and February 3, 1985, with a lowest pressure of 973 mb, and made landfall.
Track and intensity
The whole track of Tropical Storm Gertie, colored by strength, with the other storms of the 1985 season in the same basin behind it, and its wind and pressure hour by hour. Every fix is in the track table below.
The storm
- Basin
- South Indian
- Dates
- January 26, 1985 to February 3, 1985
- Peak strength
- Tropical Storm, 55 kt (63 mph)
- Lowest pressure
- 973 mb (28.73 inHg)
- Landfall
- Yes
- Accumulated cyclone energy
- 1.8
- Identifier
- SH171985
Deaths and damage
No source this site reads publishes a machine-readable casualty or damage figure for a storm of this era. The National Hurricane Center’s season tables begin in 1995 and carry deaths and damage only from 2005 in the Atlantic and 2020 in both basins; the US Storm Events record begins in 1996.
Track
| Time (UTC) | Position | Wind | Pressure | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 26, 00:00 | 16.1S 126.0E | 20 kt | 1006 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 26, 06:00 | 16.4S 125.9E | 20 kt | 1003 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 26, 12:00 | 16.6S 125.7E | 20 kt | 1003 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 26, 18:00 | 16.7S 125.4E | 20 kt | 1004 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 27, 00:00 | 16.8S 125.0E | 20 kt | 1004 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 27, 06:00 | 16.9S 124.6E | 20 kt | 1004 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 27, 12:00 | 17.0S 124.2E | 20 kt | 1005 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 27, 18:00 | 17.1S 123.8E | 20 kt | 1006 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 28, 00:00 | 17.5S 123.2E | 20 kt | 1006 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 28, 06:00 | 17.8S 122.6E | 25 kt | 1004 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 28, 12:00 | 18.0S 121.9E | 25 kt | 1003 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 28, 18:00 | 18.2S 121.1E | 25 kt | 1000 mb | Tropical storm |
| Jan 29, 00:00 | 18.0S 120.6E | 25 kt | 998 mb | XX |
| Jan 29, 06:00 | 18.1S 119.8E | 30 kt | 997 mb | XX |
| Jan 29, 12:00 | 18.2S 119.1E | 35 kt | 994 mb | XX |
| Jan 29, 18:00 | 18.2S 118.5E | 40 kt | 988 mb | XX |
| Jan 30, 00:00 | 18.1S 118.0E | 45 kt | 985 mb | XX |
| Jan 30, 06:00 | 18.1S 117.4E | 50 kt | 982 mb | XX |
| Jan 30, 12:00 | 18.4S 117.1E | 55 kt | 978 mb | XX |
| Jan 30, 18:00 | 19.2S 117.1E | 50 kt | 974 mb | XX |
| Jan 31, 00:00 | 20.2S 117.0E | 45 kt | 974 mb | XX |
| Jan 31, 06:00 | 21.2S 117.0E | 40 kt | 976 mb | XX |
| Jan 31, 12:00 | 22.2S 116.9E | 35 kt | 984 mb | XX |
| Jan 31, 18:00 | 23.8S 117.6E | 30 kt | 990 mb | XX |
| Feb 1, 00:00 | 25.2S 117.8E | 30 kt | 995 mb | Tropical storm |
| Feb 1, 06:00 | 26.4S 118.4E | 30 kt | 997 mb | Tropical storm |
| Feb 1, 12:00 | 26.9S 119.4E | 25 kt | 999 mb | Tropical storm |
| Feb 1, 18:00 | 27.0S 120.1E | 20 kt | 1000 mb | Tropical storm |
| Feb 2, 00:00 | 27.0S 121.2E | 20 kt | 1002 mb | Mixed |
| Feb 2, 06:00 | 27.0S 122.1E | 20 kt | 1002 mb | Mixed |
| Feb 2, 12:00 | 27.0S 122.8E | 15 kt | 1003 mb | Mixed |
| Feb 2, 18:00 | 27.0S 123.3E | 15 kt | 1004 mb | Mixed |
| Feb 3, 00:00 | 26.9S 123.9E | 15 kt | 1005 mb | Mixed |
Other South Indian storms of 1985
- Unnamed tropical stormSouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm AnetySouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm BobalahySouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm EmmaSouth Indian · 1985
- Unnamed tropical stormSouth Indian · 1985
- Cyclone FrankSouth Indian · 1985
- Cyclone CelestinaSouth Indian · 1985
- Unnamed tropical stormSouth Indian · 1985
- Cyclone DitraSouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm EsiteraSouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm EsiteraSouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm HubertSouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm IsobelSouth Indian · 1985
- Cyclone GerimenaSouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm FeliksaSouth Indian · 1985
- Cyclone JacobSouth Indian · 1985
- Unnamed tropical stormSouth Indian · 1985
- Cyclone KirstySouth Indian · 1985
- Tropical Storm LindsaySouth Indian · 1985
- Cyclone HelisaoninaSouth Indian · 1985
- Cyclone MargotSouth Indian · 1985
What this means
A best track is the record a warning agency settles on after the storm, not what it said at the time: position, maximum sustained wind and central pressure every six hours, revised against every observation that came in later. Category is the Saffir-Simpson scale, which runs from Category 1 at 64 kt to Category 5 at 137 kt and reads wind only, so it says nothing about surge or rain. Accumulated cyclone energy adds up the square of the wind through the storm's life, so it counts strength and duration together.
Sources
Storm history from NOAA NCEI’s International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS), which merges the official best track of every warning agency. Live storms, cones, watches and warnings from the National Hurricane Center and the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. Archived radar from NOAA’s Level II archive.