Cyclone Joni attained only tropical storm force with maximum sustained winds of about 63 mph (100 km/h), according to estimates by the U.S. military Joint Typhoon Warning Center.

The lead forecaster at the Cook Islands weather office, Kake Ioane, told Radio New Zealand that he had received reports of heavy rain in Mangaia before the storm passed to the south.

The remote island group had enjoyed four years without a threat of cyclones. A series of five such storms within a month’s time in February and March 2005 caused extensive damage to some islands.

Cyclone Meena started the onslaught, swamping Rarotonga with storm-surge tides that were accompanied by hurricane-force winds.

The Cook Islands are self-governing in free association with New Zealand.

The territory is made up of 15 small islands with a total land area of 92 square miles (240 square km), and is spread over an area of the South Pacific greater than the size of India. The island chain has a population of around 21,000.

Cyclone Joni Track

Satellite Loop Data: CIMSS