Cyclone Catarina was an extraordinarily rare tropical cyclone, forming in the southern Atlantic Ocean in March 2004. Just after becoming a hurricane, it hit the southern coast of Brazil in the state of Santa Catarina on the evening of March 28, with winds estimated near 155 kilometres per hour (96 mph), making it a Category 2-equivalent on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. The cyclone killed 3 to 10 people and caused millions of dollars in damage in Brazil. At the time, the Brazilians were taken completely by surprise, and were at first in utter disbelief that an actual cyclone could have formed in the South Atlantic despite the insistence of the Miami Hurricane Center otherwise. Later, they were convinced, and adopted the name "Catarina" for the storm, after Santa Catarina state. This event is considered by meteorologists to be a nearly once-in-a-lifetime occurrence.
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