Tropical Cyclone Zelia may have dissipated but it won’t be the last to threaten Australia’s coastline – and the next one has forced a name change before it even forms.
Zelia, which crossed the West Australian coast on Friday, brought the Bureau of Meteorology to the end of an alphabetical list that alternates by gender, with the next cyclone due to be named Anthony.
But as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese currently occupies The Lodge, the decision was made to jump to the next A-initial name on the list – Alfred.
‘When a name matches a prominent person of the time, we reorder to the next name starting with that same letter to avoid any confusion,’ a bureau spokesman said.
The change to the bureau’s list took place earlier in February.
The next cyclone after Tropical Cyclone Zelia was supposed to be called Anthony but if the prime minister stays in the job that name will be skipped
There will be no Tropical Cyclone Anthony and there may be another change if Peter Dutton is elected
Australia will vote within months on whether Mr Albanese continues to lead the nation, with polls indicating Opposition Leader Peter Dutton could restore the Liberal-National coalition to power.
If Mr Dutton is successful, it could pose a similar, albeit less clear-cut, problem for the bureau 16 cyclones on from now.
The next P-named cyclone is Peta, a traditionally feminine spelling of the nonetheless identically pronounced name.
The bureau did not respond when asked about that one, but with an average of 11 cyclones forming in the nation each season, it might have to make a decision before long
