Après un démarrage laborieux (mauvaises conditions en altitude), restant 48 heures au stade minimum de tempête tropicale, c'est à l'approche de l'île Maurice que Gaël amorce son intensification. Le cyclone Gaël aura intéressé pour la première fois cette saison les Mascareignes. En effet pendant 5 jours l'île de la Réunion sera placée en vigilance cyclonique. Fort heureusement Gaël est resté à distance respectable de Rodrigues, de l'île Maurice et de la Réunion. On pourrait être tenté de comparer Gaël à Gamède en 2007 de par sa trajectoire, avec un premier passage au Nord puis à l'Ouest de la Réunion. Mais les effets néfastes liés au cyclone, auront été bien moindres avec Gaël, la masse nuageuse étant moins étendue que Gamède.
En guise de révérence Gaël est resté cyclone tropical avec une belle configuration alors que le système se trouvait à la latitude du 30° Sud ! Le dernier cyclone ayant atteint cette latitude est le cyclone Edwina il y a 16 ans. La température de l'océan Indien est cette année plus chaude qu'à la normale.
On February 1, RSMC La Reunion began issuing advisories on an area of disturbed weather newly formed in the central Indian Ocean. JTWC assessed the potential for the development of a significant tropical cyclone within next 24 hours as "poor". JTWC upgraded the disturbance's chances of forming into a tropical cyclone to "fair". On February 2, RSMC designated the area of disturbed weather as "Zone of Disturbed Weather 08. " Later that day JTWC upgraded the disturbance's chances to "good" and issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert. Later that day RSMC La Reunion upgraded Zone of Disturbed Weather 08 into Tropical Disturbance 08. On February 3 , JTWC was upgraded the system to Tropical Cyclone 13S, RSMC La Reunion redesignated Tropical Disturbance 08 to Moderate Tropical Storm Gael. Early next day on February 5, RSMC La Reunion was upgraded Moderate Tropical Storm Gael into Severe Tropical Storm Gael. The system quickly intensified that morning into a Tropical Cyclone north of Réunion Island in the early afternoon. Gael was upgraded to an Intense Tropical Cyclone in the evening on February 6. It held that strength for the next couple of days before weakening back to a Severe Tropical Storm. On February 10, the JTWC issued its final warning on Gael as it had transitioned into a cold-core system over the Southern Ocean which then merged with the extratropical remnants of Innis.
On February 3, Metéo-France issued a pre-cyclone alert (yellow alert) for the islands near Réunion. The next day, Mauritius Meteorological Services issued their Cyclone Warning Class II as Gael approached northeast of the island. Two fatalities occurred on Réunion as a result of heavy rain produced by Gael. A motorcyclist was swept away after trying to cross a submerged road. The other death occurred after a man, who was reportedly drunk, attempted to swim across a flooded road. He was overcome by the waters and swept away. Officials in Madagascar warned the public about the possibility of torrential rains, mudslides, and significant property damage from Gael.
au 1e passage dans la sud-ouest de la reunion n'a pas été trop toucher a la 2e oui ce phenoméne mérite un passage en alerte orange 
