The worst cyclone in almost 100 years hit the French Indian Ocean island of Mayotte on Saturday, uprooting trees, tearing apart homes and destroying the archipelago’s already fragile infrastructure, killing at least hundreds of people. There are concerns that
Rescue teams have been dispatched to these islands, located between the coasts of Mozambique and Madagascar, but damage to airports and electricity distribution could hamper efforts in areas where clean drinking water is chronically lacking. Highly sexual.
Appearing on Mayotte’s La Plouère television station on Sunday, the archipelago’s governor, François-Xavier Vieuxville, said the 11 confirmed deaths were likely to rise sharply in the coming days.
“It’s definitely going to be in the hundreds, maybe even thousands,” he said.
Vieuxville said it would be very difficult to arrive at a final number, given that most residents are Muslim and traditionally bury the dead within 24 hours.
Ambudilwahedou Soumaira, the mayor of Mayotte’s capital Mamzu, earlier told Agence France-Presse that nine people were seriously injured after being hit by Cyclone Chidor and were fighting for their lives in hospital, while a further 246 people were seriously injured. He said he is doing so.
“Hospitals and schools have been damaged. Houses have been completely destroyed,” he said, adding that “nothing was spared” from the cyclone.
One local resident, Ibrahim, told AFP he had to clear blocked roads himself and described “apocalyptic scenes” as he passed through the main island.
Mayotte’s 320,000 residents had been ordered into lockdown on Saturday as Chido brought winds of more than 226 km/h.
Aerial footage shared by the French gendarmerie showed the remains of hundreds of temporary homes dotting the hills of Mayotte, a hub for illegal immigration from neighboring Comoros.
French Interior Minister Bruno Letailraud will travel to Mayotte on Monday and will be accompanied by 160 soldiers and firefighters, in addition to the 110 already deployed to the islands, his office announced.
Officials in Réunion, another French Indian Ocean territory about 900 miles (1,400 kilometers) away from Madagascar, said medical workers and equipment were being transported by air and sea.
The ambulance landed in Mayotte at around 3:30pm local time on Sunday, carrying three tons of medical supplies, blood for transfusions and 17 medical staff. Two military aircraft were expected to follow.
A naval patrol boat was also scheduled to leave Réunion with personnel and equipment, including from power supplier EDF.
Réunion Governor Patrice Latron said authorities aim to build an air and sea bridge to Mayotte. About 800 more rescue workers were expected to be sent in the coming days, and more than 80 tonnes of supplies were being transported by air or ship. He said priorities include restoring access to electricity and drinking water.
Mayotte is the poorest island in France and the poorest region in the EU. In some areas, residents reported that entire neighborhoods of metal shacks and shacks were destroyed, many trees uprooted, boats capsized or sunk and power supplies cut off.
Chido also attacked the nearby islands of Comoros and Madagascar. Comorian authorities say 11 fishermen who went to sea earlier this week are missing.
An intense tropical cyclone that made landfall in Mozambique on Sunday could affect 2.5 million people in northern Mozambique, as aid agencies warn further loss of life and severe damage could occur. There is sex.
A UNICEF spokesperson confirmed that Mozambique’s northernmost province of Cabo Delgado, home to about 2 million people, was affected, with many homes, schools and health facilities partially or completely destroyed.
The region’s cyclone season lasts from December to March, and parts of the southeastern Indian Ocean and southern Africa have been hit by strong cyclones in recent years. In 2019, Cyclone Idai killed more than 1,300 people in Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe. Last year’s Cyclone Freddie killed more than 1,000 people in multiple countries.
Cyclones not only bring the risk of flooding and landslides, but also stagnant water pools that can later cause deadly outbreaks such as cholera, dengue and malaria.
Research shows that the climate emergency is making cyclone conditions worse. These could cause a massive humanitarian crisis in poor countries in southern Africa, but they are contributing only a small amount to global warming, and rich countries are struggling to cope with the effects of climate change. underscoring their call for further support.
The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report
