At least 11 people were killed after a cyclone slammed into Mayotte, the most intense storm to hit the French Indian Ocean archipelago north of Madagascar in nearly a century, French weather forecasters and authorities have said.
Cyclone Chido swept through Mayotte overnight, Meteo-France said, bringing winds of more than 124 miles (200km) an hour and damaging makeshift housing, government buildings and a hospital. It was the strongest storm in more than 90 years to hit the islands, the forecaster said.
It was difficult to ascertain the precise death toll after the cyclone, which also raised concerns about access to food, water and sanitation, authorities said.
“For the toll, it’s going to be complicated, because Mayotte is a Muslim land where the dead are buried within 24 hours,” a French interior ministry official said.
Mayotte is significantly poorer than the rest of France and has grappled with gang violence and social unrest for decades. Tensions were stoked earlier this year by a water shortage.
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 Saturday. He said the highest alert had been lifted so that rescuers can 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.
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