Heavy Rain Expected Over Parts Of The Group From Thursday - TC Ruby Making Landfall Over New Caledonia

Tropical Cyclone (TC) Ruby has not intensified further as anticipated last night and is still a category 2 system.

However, this morning clouds and thunderstorms have started rotating over the weather system with the centre currently located just over the northern tip of New Caledonia.

TC Ruby is bringing a lot of rain with damaging gale to destructive storm force winds (110 kilometres per hour gusting to 155 kilometres per hour) over New Caledonia.

The TC Ruby is expected to further intensify into a category 3 system around midday today to tonight.

The weather system is expected to continue to move east southeast across New Caledonia, to the far south of Fiji and North of New Zealand.

TC Ruby it is not expected to have any direct threat over the Fiji Group.

Yet, as the system passes to the far south of Fiji, expect the northerly wind flow to be dominating over the group from Thursday.

Figure 1: Tropical Cyclone Forecast Track Map for Tropical Cyclone Ruby (Category 2) issued by the Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre- Nadi Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre at 7.50am today.

For more information and clarification: please contact the Acting Director of Meteorology, Mr. Terry Atalifo on (679) 9905379 or via email at terry.atalifo@met.gov.fj.

Feedback: rosi.doviverata@fijisun.com.fj