Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage on the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, leaving many people dead, officials said Saturday, as the storm roared toward the east coast of Africa.
French Interior Minister, Bruno Retailleau said a “very provisional” tally shows there are at least “a few people” who have died. He said he would not yet provide any precise numbers of people killed and injured given rescuers have not yet been able to assess the situation on the ground.
“We’re afraid the toll will be high, but for the moment I can’t give any figures,” Retailleau told reporters following an emergency meeting at the interior ministry in Paris. “The island seems devastated.”
Chido brought winds in excess of 220 kph (136 mph), according to the French weather service, ripping metal roofs off houses in Mayotte, which has a population of just over 300,000 spread over two main islands that lie about 800 kilometres (497 miles) off Mozambique.
France’s new Prime Minister François Bayrou, who was appointed Friday, said public facilities have been “severely damaged or destroyed” including at the prefecture, the hospital and the airport. He said many people living in precarious shacks in slum areas have faced “very serious risks.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said he was closely monitoring the situation.
“Our island is being hit by the most violent and destructive cyclone since 1934. Many of us have lost everything,” Mayotte prefect François-Xavier Bieuville said in a Facebook post on Saturday.
He said the highest alert had been lifted so that rescuers could help after the worst of the cyclone had passed.
The French Interior Ministry said 1,600 police and gendarmerie officers have been deployed to “help the population and prevent potential looting.”
Some 110 rescuers and firefighters sent to Mayotte from France and the nearby territory of Reunion have been deployed and an additional reinforcement of 140 people will be sent on Sunday.
France’s poorest island, Mayotte has previously struggled with drought and underinvestment.
French Transport Minister François Durovray said Mayotte airport was “badly damaged, particularly the control tower” by the cyclone in a message on X.
He said infrastructure on the island had been heavily impacted and air traffic would first be reopened to military aircraft only. Ships are being used to provide supplies.
Mayotte is still under red alert for the ordinary population and people were asked to “remain confined in a solid shelter,” prefect Bieuville said. Only emergency and security services were allowed to go out.
Local broadcaster Mayotte la 1ere said that thousands of homes were without power, tin huts and other small structures had been blown away and many trees had been blown over.
