What makes tropical Cyclone Freddy an exceptional storm

A road destroyed by floods

A road destroyed by floods due to heavy rains caused by Cyclone Freddy in Blantyre, Malawi on March 13, 2013. PHOTO | AMOS GUMULIRA | AFP

Cyclone Freddy, which has twice smashed into the African coast after traversing the Indian Ocean, may be enshrined in the history books as the longest ever documented, meteorologists say. 

A factfile: