Typhoon Mayotte kills several hundred, possibly thousands, in worst storm of the century By Reuters

Written by Michel Rose and Abdou Moustoifa

PARIS/MORONI (Reuters) – Several hundred and possibly thousands of people may die when the strongest storm in nearly a century hits the French Indian Ocean Archipelago, Mayotte, a French local official said on Sunday.

“I think there will be a few hundred, maybe we will reach a thousand, even a few thousand,” prime minister Francois-Xavier Bieuville told local Mayotte La 1ere news station.

Asked about the number of deaths from Cyclone Chido, the French Ministry of the Interior said “it will be difficult to account for all the victims” and the number is not yet known.

Cyclone Chido hit Mayotte overnight, Meteo-France said, with winds of more than 200 kph (124 mph), destroying houses, government buildings and a hospital. It was the strongest storm in more than 90 years to hit the islands, the forecaster said.

“The truth is, what we are facing is a disaster, you feel like you are in the aftermath of a nuclear war… I saw the whole place disappearing,” Mohamed Ishmael, a resident of Mayotte’s capital Mamoudzou, told Reuters by phone.

Aerial images shared by the French gendarmerie showed the collapse of hundreds of makeshift houses dotting the hillsides on one of the islands of Mayotte, which has been a hub for illegal immigration from nearby Comoros.

Local media footage showed a mother pushing a newborn baby’s bed through a flooded corridor at a Mayotte hospital. Overturned police boats lay on the beach while coconut trees were smashed on the roofs of many buildings.

“My thoughts are with my people in Mayotte, who went through a few terrible hours, and others, who lost everything, lost their lives,” said French President Emmanuel Macron.

In the past few decades thousands of people have tried to cross from Comoros, on the East African coast, to Mayotte, which has a high standard of living and access to the French welfare system.

More than 100,000 undocumented immigrants live in Mayotte, according to the French interior ministry.

It was difficult to get an exact death toll after the storm, which also raised concerns about access to food, water and sanitation, authorities said.

“For these people, it will be difficult, because Mayotte is a Muslim country where the dead are buried within 24 hours,” a French interior ministry official said earlier.

Located about 8,000 km (5,000 miles) from Paris, Mayotte is poorer than the rest of France and has struggled with gang violence and civil unrest for decades.

More than three-quarters of the people in Mayotte live below the French poverty line. Tensions rose earlier this year due to water shortages.

A bridge was being built from Reunion Island, another French overseas territory across Madagascar, the government said.

The crisis is the first challenge faced by Prime Minister Francois Bayrou, days after he was appointed by Macron following the fall of the previous government.

This typhoon continued to attack northern Mozambique on Sunday, but it was not yet clear to what extent. Internet watchdogs NetBlocks said in X that heavy rain and wind damaged electrical and telecommunication infrastructure.

In Comoros, two people were slightly injured, 24 were left homeless, and 21 homes were destroyed, authorities said.

France colonized Mayotte in 1843 and annexed the entire archipelago, including Comoros, in 1904.

In a 1974 referendum, 95% supported secession but 63% in Mayotte voted to remain in France. Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli declared independence in 1975. Mayotte is still governed by Paris.