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Tropical Cyclone Alfred could have been known as Cyclone Anthony, before a switch from the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM).
The bureau maintains an approved list of alphabetical names for cyclones, divided into five sections.
After Zelia finished the previous section of the list, the next scheduled name was Anthony before the BoM
“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 BoM spokesperson told AAP.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was asked by radio station B105 Brisbane on Wednesday if he had any role in the name change.
“No, look, the names of these things are beyond … my government didn’t legislate on any of those things. I think they just go through a range of names,” Albanese said.
After a discussion about the potential confusion that could be caused when frequently addressing the media during a natural disaster, Albanese added: “It does kind of make sense.”
The name Anthony has been pushed further down the list, scheduled to be used 41 cyclones after Alfred.
Residents sandbagging at Capalaba, near Brisbane, on Wednesday ahead of the expected arrival of Cyclone Alfred. Source: AAP / Savannah Meacham
The BoM adopted a policy for cyclone naming in 1963, only using female names until 1975.
The list of names is approved by neighbouring countries within the World Meteorological Organisation Regional Tropical Cyclone Committees to avoid duplication and retain names if cyclones move across borders.
Another name change may be in the future with the next name selected for the letter P being Peta, with identical pronunciation to Opposition leader Peter Dutton.
