 Similar to Cyclone Alison that had formed in early January 1991, a surge in the monsoon trough spawned what would become Tropical Cyclone Bella, associated with the intertropical convergence zone.On January 13, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) began monitoring a system about 660 km (410 mi) southwest of Padang, Sumatra in the Australian basin.Moving to the west-southwest, the system crossed into the south-west Indian Ocean on January 17, and the next day was tracked by the Météo France office in Réunion (MFR).