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Very Intense Tropical Cyclone Hudah was a powerful and destructive tropical cyclone that affected Southeast Africa in April 2000. It was the last in a series of three cyclones that impacted Madagascar during the year. Hudah first developed as a disturbance embedded within the monsoon trough on 22 March, within the Australian region cyclone basin. Moving westward as the result of a strong subtropical ridge to its south, the storm quickly intensified, and reached Category 2 cyclone intensity on 25 March before entering the Southwest Indian cyclone basin. For various reasons that remain unknown, the cyclone was only designated a name by the time it had crossed into the area of responsibility of the Regional Specialized Meteorological Center in Réunion. Nonetheless, Météo-France (MFR) assigned the name Hudah to the cyclone. An eye formed, and the storm intensified into a tropical cyclone on 27 March well to the southeast of Diego Garcia. On 1 April, the MFR upgraded it to a very intense tropical cyclone, estimating peak 10-minute winds of . By contrast, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) estimated 1-minute winds of . At this time, the MFR estimated the pressure to have been 905 hPa (mbar), making Hudah the most intense tropical cyclone worldwide in 2000. Cyclone Hudah maintained peak winds until making landfall just southeast of Antalaha on 2 April. It weakened greatly over land, but re-attained tropical cyclone status on 5 April after moving over the Mozambique Channel. Hudah reached 10-minute winds of by the time it made landfall on Mozambique near Pebane District, Mozambique, on 8 April, and dissipated by the next day.
While in the vicinity, Hudah brought moderate winds to Rodrigues, St. Brandon, and Tromelin Island. The cyclone affected the same parts of Madagascar that were previously impacted by cyclones Cyclone Eline and Gloria. Waves reached at least in height along the coast. The storm was considered the worst to affect the Antalaha region in 20 years, where 90% of homes were destroyed. It was estimated that the storm left at least 100,000 people homeless in Madagascar, and there were 111 deaths. In Mozambique, damage was much less than expected, and the storm affected areas farther north in the country than where Eline struck. Heavy rainfall occurred along the coast, but was insufficient to cause river flooding. Strong winds damaged roofs and downed trees, mostly around Pebane, and the storm killed three people.
Initially, the storm moved westward under the influence of a strong subtropical ridge to the south. Despite having reached tropical cyclone intensity according to Perth TCWC, it was not assigned a name. Once the storm crossed 90°E on 25 March, the Météo-France's La Réunion Regional Specialized Meteorological Center (MFR) began tracking the system as a moderate tropical storm, giving it the name Hudah. Gradually intensifying, Hudah developed an eye with an eyewall primarily in the northern semicircle, indicated by a Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) pass over the system. On 26 March, Hudah ceased strengthening as cloud tops warmed and the eye became no longer evident. Atmospheric divergence remained favorable, and Hudah eventually restrengthened, attaining tropical cyclone intensity at 00:00 UTC on 27 March, while located approximately southeast of Diego Garcia. This period of strengthening was short-lived, likely due to dry air. The cloud structure fluctuated as well, with a poorly defined eye appearing at times on satellite imagery. Hudah was able to attain an initial peak intensity of at 06:00 UTC on 29 March according to the MFR, shortly after passing south of Diego Garcia. An anticyclone that had been over Hudah showed signs of weakening later that day, spurring an increase in wind shear and causing weakening. This period of weakening was short-lived, and Hudah resumed its former strengthening trend by the night of 30 March as shear decreased and convective organization and areal extent increased. After passing north of Rodrigues Island, Hudah attained intense tropical cyclone status by 12:00 UTC on 31 March. Satellite imagery indicated a large, cloud-free eye, indicative of a strong tropical cyclone.
On 1 April, Hudah continued intensifying while approaching eastern Madagascar, and by 06:00 UTC that day, the MFR upgraded the storm to very intense tropical cyclone intensity – the highest rating on the agency's cyclone classification scale. Shortly after, at 12:00 UTC, the storm was analyzed to have reached its peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of and a minimum barometric pressure of , ranking Hudah among some of the strongest tropical cyclones ever recorded in the Southwest Indian Ocean. The JTWC listed a similar intensity for the storm, with winds of , though these winds were for 1-minute sustained winds instead of 10-minute sustained winds. This intensity was later analyzed to have been very near the theoretical maximum for tropical cyclones in the environmental conditions Hudah was in. At the time, TRMM imagery indicated that the storm featured two concentric eyewalls. Cyclone Hudah maintained peak intensity up until it made its first landfall approximately southeast of Antalaha at 17:30 UTC on 2 April. Hudah substantially weakened as it traversed the mountainous terrain of northern Madagascar, and was downgraded to tropical depression status by the time it entered the Mozambique Channel at 12:00 UTC on 3 April.
Despite losing much of its convection over land, Hudah maintained a well-organized cloud structure once in the Mozambique Channel on 3 April. As a result of moving back over warm waters, the system began to re-intensify, and attained moderate tropical storm intensity at 00:00 UTC on 4 April. Meanwhile, a large central dense overcast developed, and Hudah began to track west-southwestward as opposed to its previous westward trajectory. Despite computer forecast models suggesting that Hudah would continue westward, the storm instead turn to a southward drift, giving it time to strengthen in the Mozambique Channel. This was the result of a mid-latitude trough weakening the nearby subtropical ridge. By 18:00 UTC on 5 April, Hudah was upgraded back to tropical cyclone intensity. A banding eye began to appear on satellite imagery, though it remained generally unstable, and a large banding feature formed over the western half of Hudah. The nearby trough later weakened in intensity, causing the tropical cyclone to move north-northwestward towards the Mozambique coast on 7 April. It was at this time that Hudah reached a tertiary peak intensity with winds of . The tropical cyclone accelerated northwards throughout the day, eventually making its final landfall near Pebane District at 06:00 UTC on 8 April as a slightly weaker storm. Once inland, Hudah rapidly weakened, and was no longer tracked by the MFR by 00:00 UTC on 9 April. The JTWC issued its final warning on the system six hours later, as the remnants of Hudah moved through northeastern Mozambique, producing spotty convection.
Upon making landfall, Hudah impacted the same regions that were affected earlier in the year by Cyclone Leon–Eline and Severe Tropical Storm Gloria. The cyclone produced waves at least in height, which impacted the coast. Across affected areas, coffee plantations, fruit trees, and rice crops in low-lying areas were damaged. Food warehouses in the northeastern areas of Madagascar were destroyed. In the small town of Antalaha, up to 90 percent of all homes were destroyed, and two people were killed. The city's water and electrical systems were cut off. Only eight homes remained intact along a stretch of road leading from the town to the local airstrip. As a result, only concrete structures remained standing, while those made of iron sheeting or wood materials were destroyed. Thus, the road was covered in debris, slightly delaying airlift operations to the region in the storm's aftermath. Nearby vanilla fields were also severely damaged.
Due to the effects of Hudah, the cyclone was considered the worst to strike the Antalaha region in 20 years. The towns of Maroantsetra and Andapa were also hit hard, with 60 to 70 percent of homes in the latter town destroyed. Maroantsetra, a coastal town, was flooded by the storm surge, and as a result seven people died. The commune of Mananara Nord was completely flooded by the storm. Other isolated villages could not be reached via road or telecommunications due to the storm. One of these cities was Sambava, which suffered from a lack of available telephone links since late on 2 April. One person died in Sambava. A resort in the town of Cap Est was flattened. Initial estimates indicated that Hudah caused at least 100,000 people to become homeless.
Just 46 days after Cyclone Eline's devastating landfall in Mozambique, Hudah brought further flooding to the nation, although farther north than Eline. Before the storm moved ashore, Hudah dropped of rainfall over 24 hours in Quelimane along the coast. Despite the heavy rainfall from Hudah, there was not a repeat of the deadly river flooding that followed Eline. The Licungo River rose due to the rains, but the water levels did not rise above the banks. Some roads near Pebane were flooded, although not deep enough to disrupt travel. The storm's strong winds knocked over many trees in its path, mostly in a radius around Pebane, blocking the main road into the city. The winds also damaged about 10% of the roofs in Pebane, as well as four schools; about 160 boarding school children had to be sheltered elsewhere due to damage. A damaged wall fell and injured four people. Outside of the city, the winds damaged the cassava crop, and about of crop fields were destroyed. The cyclone destroyed around 100 huts in Pebane and nearby Moma District, leaving 300 people homeless. There were three deaths in Mozambique related to Hudah; strong winds knocked a coconut off a tree, killing a child. Overall damage was less than anticipated.
In Mozambique, the country's National Institute of Disaster Management distributed 10 tons of food products and plastic housing tents to Pebane, where damage was worst. Officials determined that the storm damage could be repaired by local governments.
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