 Over the following three days, the system gradually developed into a tropical cyclone as it tracked towards the southeast.On 18 October, a ship named "Alkuwait" encountered the storm and reported winds near hurricane-force; however, the satellite presentation of the system was not supportive of these winds.Later named Marcia, the storm is estimated to have attained peak winds around 85 km/h (50 mph) on 20 October.