The cyclone hit eastern Sri Lanka at peak strength, then weakened slightly while crossing the island before making landfall over southern India on December 28.

[1] An area of atmospheric convection developed and persisted on December 21 in the central Bay of Bengal[2] forming within an active near-equatorial trough.

[3] Located within an area of weak vertical wind shear, the system steadily organized, and after initially remaining nearly stationary it began to move slowly westward.

On December 25, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center initiated advisories on Tropical Cyclone 04B while it was located about 155 miles (249 km) east of Sri Lanka.

[2] Shortly thereafter, the IMD upgraded the deep depression to a cyclonic storm as a central dense overcast developed over the center.

By late on December 25, a rainband wrapped tightly into the center,[2] and it intensified into a severe cyclonic storm as it approached the coast of Sri Lanka.

[4] While crossing the country, the cyclone dropped between 4 and 8 inches (100 and 200 millimetres) of precipitation, compounding the effects of severe monsoonal flooding from the previous month.

[1] An entire fishing village was completely destroyed,[2] and heavy rainfall flooded rivers, lakes, and canals,[1] covering roads and crops with floodwaters.

[6] No damage reports exist for regions under control of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, despite the fact the storm made landfall there.

[7] The cyclone produced rough surf along the southern Indian coast,[5] and heavy rainfall in and around Thoothukudi, causing flooding in a few low-lying areas.

The rainfall caused some damage to banana crops, uprooted several trees, and left some roads impassable,[7] but was largely beneficial in alleviating drought conditions.

[6] Within two days of the cyclone striking, the Sri Lankan Red Cross began an operation with 4,000 volunteers to help those most badly affected.