It made landfall two weeks after Tropical Storm Ana brought deadly floods to the island country in late January.

Afterward, it entered much more favorable conditions, rapidly intensified yet again to a high-end Category 4 cyclone on the Saffir–Simpson scale while moving towards Madagascar.

The storm underwent an eyewall replacement cycle the next day, and fluctuated in intensity before making landfall in Madagascar as a Category 3 cyclone, later rapidly weakening due to the mountainous terrain on the island.

[3][4] As the storm approached, Madagascar prepared recovery supplies, with worries of significant flooding due to the more barren geography of the country.

Batsirai made landfall in the country early on 5 February, and brought heavy impacts and majorly disrupting power and communication throughout the affected areas.

The disturbance was located within a marginally favourable environment for further development, with high levels of vertical wind shear, being offset by warm sea surface temperatures of around 29–30 °C (84–86 °F), therefore the agency gave a low chance for potential tropical cyclogenesis within the next 24 hours.

[12] A day later at 00:30 UTC, the agency upgraded the probability to medium after the system gradually improved its convective pattern.

[13] Later at 21:30 UTC the same day, the agency issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) for Invest 96S, after noting its obscure low-level circulation center.

[17] The MFR further upgraded it to a tropical depression at 12:00 UTC the same day, as it continued to improve its convective structure along its low-level center.

[20] Three hours later, the MFR reported that the system had become a moderate tropical storm, and the Mauritius Meteorological Services named it Batsirai.

[23] Two hours later, the JTWC also upgraded it to a Category 2 tropical cyclone on the Saffir–Simpson scale, as it developed a small eye at about 7 nmi (13 km; 8.1 mi) in diameter.

[29] At 03:00 UTC on 30 January, the JTWC further upgraded it to a Category 2 tropical cyclone after noting a well-defined central dense overcast and a microwave eye feature.

[31] Three hours later, the JTWC upgraded it to a Category 3 tropical cyclone, as its eyewall had expanded and also developed a 5 nmi (9.3 km; 5.8 mi) wide pinhole-eye.

[32] However, this was short-lived, and it weakened to Category 1 status by 03:00 UTC on 1 February, as its pinhole-shaped eye collapsed and its eyewall became disorganized, possibly due to the influence of increasing vertical wind shear.

[33][34] At 15:00 UTC the same day, however, it re - strengthened to Category 2 status, as it managed to consolidate and its eye feature re-appeared on satellite imagery.

After completing the eyewall replacement cycle, the storm again briefly intensified into a Category 4 system, with MFR determining that Batsirai's central barometric pressure had rapidly fallen to 934 hPa (mbar; 27.58 inHg).

[41][42] Gradually weakening due to land interaction with Madagascar, it made landfall at 17:30 UTC on 5 February close to the city of Nosy Varika.

[46][47] Despite fluctuating convective activity, high wind shear, and low sea surface temperatures, due to baroclinic forces, the MFR upgraded the system to a moderate tropical storm once more.

The country's government's disaster management agency worked with UNOSAT as well, and aerial assistance was also prepared as Batsirai approached.

Some houses were reduced to just wooden frames, and a survivor said the damage resembled a "fire", and that it was the "strongest cyclone [anyone] had experienced".

[76] A large portion of Madagascar was still waterlogged from Ana weeks earlier, and the arrival of Batsirai worsened the effects.

[78] Flooding and debris rendered 17 bridges and 17 roads impassable, as well as at least 69 classrooms completely destroyed, and 439 damaged; this left over 9,000 children unable to attend lessons,[79] with 403 in Mananjary alone.

[70] The president of Madagascar, Andry Rajoelina, showed images of a church's metal roof twisted off, along other damage online after he visited Mananjary.

[76][79] The UNHAS aerial flight discovered that Fitovinany region mostly suffered flooding damage; with several communities taking heavy hits to their agriculture and infrastructure.

UNICEF also supported relief efforts by giving out kits to create child-friendly spaces in several regions of the country.

[89] A team that initially consisted of five EU Civil Protection officials from France, Finland, and Sweden traveled to affected areas to help victims of the storm.