Thousands may have died, Francois-Xavier Vieuxville, governor of Mayotte, told local broadcaster Mayotte La 1 Erre on Sunday.
Separately, French Interior Minister Bruno Letailraud told reporters on arrival in Mayotte where he was in talks with authorities that it could “take many days” to establish the exact death toll. .
Cyclone Chido was a Category 4 storm, bringing winds of more than 136 miles per hour to the island, according to a preliminary report from the country’s meteorological bureau, Météo-France. Its strength weakened after it hit the African mainland, the service added. Amidst the wreckage, the only sounds heard on video from the scene are the chirping of birds stepping over debris strewn on the ground. Wooden fishing boats of various sizes have washed up on the shore, and the Kalihani interisland ferry is entangled in debris and stuck at odd angles along the coast.
Telephone poles have been torn from the roadside, and wires are flying through the air in the wind and heavy rain.
Cyclones, also known as typhoons and hurricanes, are giant heat engines of wind and rain that feed on warm ocean water and moist air.
All three are storm systems with wind speeds exceeding 114 miles per hour, but the names vary depending on where in the world the storm occurs. According to the National Oceanic Service, hurricanes form in the North Atlantic and Northeast Pacific, typhoons form in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean, and cyclones form in the Northwestern Pacific.
The cyclone season in the southwestern Indian Ocean typically lasts from mid-November to the end of April, Météo France said.
Experts warn that climate change is worsening the effects on the atmosphere. As the atmosphere warms, it can hold more moisture, increasing the likelihood of warmer, wetter, and more intense atmospheric river storms, increasing the risk of flooding and increasing costs. It will be expensive.
In 2023, Cyclone Freddy, the most powerful tropical cyclone on record, crossed 5,000 miles across the Indian Ocean, hitting Madagascar and Réunion before hitting mainland Africa, killing more than 1,000 people in Malawi and Mozambique.
