Paris: Several hundred people, potentially thousands, are feared to have been killed by Cyclone Chido in the French archipelago of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, a senior local French official said on Sunday.
“I think there will certainly be several hundreds, maybe we will reach a thousand, even several thousands,” prefect Francois-Xavier Bieuville said on local media channel Mayotte La 1ere.
A devastated hill on the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido hit. Credit: AP
Asked about the death toll of several hundred, the French Interior Ministry said “it will be difficult to account for all victims” and said a figure could not be determined at this stage.
Cyclone Chido swept through Mayotte overnight, Meteo-France said, bringing winds of more than 200km/h and damaging makeshift housing, government buildings and a hospital. The forecaster said it was the strongest storm to hit the islands in more than 90 years.
“My thoughts are with our compatriots in Mayotte, who have gone through the most horrific few hours, and who have, for some, lost everything, lost their lives,” French President Emmanuel Macron said.
Rescue workers clear an area in Mayotte after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage.Credit: AP
Aerial footage shared by the French gendarmerie showed the wreckage of hundreds of makeshift houses strewn across the hills of one of Mayotte’s islands, which have been a focal point for illegal immigration from nearby Comoros.
In the last few decades, thousands of people have attempted to cross from Comoros, off the coast of East Africa, to Mayotte, which has a higher standard of living and access to the French welfare system.
Over 100,000 undocumented migrants live in Mayotte, according to the French interior ministry.
