Madagascar braces for direct hit from cyclone

"Dangerous" Category 4 Tropical Cyclone Enawo plowed toward Madagascar on Monday and is expected to make landfall on the island nation on Tuesday morning, the Weather Underground predicted.

The storm was upgraded late Monday from a Category 2 to a Category 4, with winds estimated at 144 mph, according to WeatherBell meteorologist Ryan Maue.

The storm "is likely to unleash a destructive siege of damaging winds, storm surge flooding, rainfall flooding and mudslides in the island's strongest landfall in at least four years," the Weather Channel warned.

Madagascar's meteorology department issued a red alert for northeastern Madagascar.

The worst impacts are expected to be felt from Tuesday into Wednesday as Enawo makes landfall and moves over parts of eastern Madagascar, AccuWeather said.

Some parts of Madagascar could see up to 16 inches of rain, while 4 to 8 inches are expected near the capital of Antananarivo (population 1.6 million), Weather Underground meteorologist Jeff Masters said. This could lead to severe flooding and mudslides

A cyclone is the same type of storm as a hurricane or typhoon. They are called cyclones (or tropical cyclones) in the Indian Ocean.

Since it's in the Southern Hemisphere, Enawo is spinning in a clockwise direction, unlike hurricanes and storms in the Northern Hemisphere, which spin counterclockwise.

Madagascar has been struck by twelve major (Category 3 or stronger) tropical cyclones since 1983, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

In March 2004, Tropical Cyclone Gafilo hit in roughly the same area of northeast Madagascar that Enawo is forecast to strike, the Weather Channel said. It killed 363 people, according to the EM-DAT International Disaster Database.