For two days toward the end of October, an area of convection persisted within the equatorial trough, east-southeast of the Chagos Archipelago. With a ridge to the south, the system moved generally southwestward. Initially, strong wind shear exposed the circulation, although the system had good inflow from the south. At 12:00 UTC on 25 October, the MFR designated the system as Tropical Disturbance 01, and on the next day upgraded it to a tropical depression, estimating winds of . Also on 26 October, the JTWC classified the system as Tropical Cyclone 01S about 1,575 km (980 mi) east-southeast of Diego Garcia, estimating peak winds of , or a minimal tropical storm. This followed a decrease in wind shear and an increase in convection over the center. Persistent wind shear prevented the system from organizing, causing the thunderstorms to be removed from the center. The JTWC discontinued advisories on the cyclone on 27 October, and on the same day the MFR downgraded it to a tropical disturbance. On 29 October, the MFR issued their final advisory on the system. The remnants continued to the west-southwest, occasionally producing thunderstorms through early November.
