This handout aerial photograph taken and released by the French Securite Civile on December 15, 2024, shows members of the French Securite Civile removing debris in Combani, in the French territory of Mayotte, in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido hit the archipelago. (Photo by Handout / Securite Civile / AFP)
By AFP - Agence France Presse
France in crisis as rescue teams bring aid to Mayotte after Cyclone
Saint-Denis de la Reunion: France's government went into crisis mode on Monday as rescue teams raced to reach survivors of a cyclone that left hundreds of people dead after crossing the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean.
Images from Mayotte showed scenes of devastation, with houses reduced to piles of rubble.
According to his office, President Emmanuel Macron summoned top government officials to a crisis meeting that began at 17:00 GMT.
According to experts, Chido, the most destructive cyclone to hit Mayotte in 90 years, is the latest in a series of storms around the world fueled by climate change.
The disaster represents a major challenge for a government that is still operating only as an interim, days after Macron appointed the sixth prime minister of his term.
The disaster has left health services in tatters, with the main hospital badly damaged and health centers out of operation, Health Minister Genevieve Darrieussecq told France 2.
“The hospital suffered major damage and destruction caused by the water, especially in the surgical, intensive care, maternity and emergency units,” she said, adding that ‘the medical centers were not working either.’
Climate change supercharge
Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage to Mayotte airport and cut off electricity, water, and communication connections when it hit on Saturday.
Trees were uprooted, and power lines downed.
The supply of drinking water, a problem in Mayotte even in normal times, is now a major priority.
There was also widespread damage to telecommunications, with mobile phone networks, internet access, and landline services almost completely disrupted, telecommunications providers in Mayotte reported.
Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau traveled to Mayotte and, upon his arrival, told the authorities: “We'll need days to pay the toll.”
The “exceptional” cyclone was supercharged by the particularly warm waters of the Indian Ocean, meteorologist Francois Gourand, from the Meteo France weather service, told AFP.
In Brazil, host of the next UN conference on climate change, the Foreign Ministry said on Monday that the cyclone highlighted the need for greater global efforts to adapt to the consequences of climate change.
'Slums razed to the ground'
Asked about the possible death toll, Mayor François-Xavier Bieuville, the main Paris-appointed authority in the territory, told broadcaster Mayotte la Premiere: “I think it will be several hundred, maybe we'll get close to a thousand or even several thousand.”
With the roads closed, the authorities fear that many may still be trapped under the rubble in inaccessible areas.
The majority of Mayotte's population is Muslim, and religious tradition dictates that bodies must be buried quickly, which means that some may never be counted.
Mayotte is France's poorest region, with around a third of the population living in shantytowns, whose flimsy sheet metal roofed houses offered little protection from the storm.
“All the slums have been destroyed, which suggests a considerable number of victims,” a source close to the authorities, who asked not to be identified, told AFP.
The assessment of the number of victims is further complicated by irregular immigration to Mayotte, especially from the Comoros islands to the north.
Mayotte officially has 320,000 inhabitants, “but it is estimated that there are 100,000 to 200,000 more people, taking into account illegal immigration,” the source added.
The source said that few unregistered residents would have gone to the accommodation centers before the cyclone, “probably for fear of being checked.”
'Apocalyptic scenes'
Chido was packing winds of at least 226 kilometers per hour when it hit Mayotte, which lies to the east of Mozambique.
The mayor of Mamoudzou, the capital of Mayotte, Ambdilwahedou Soumaila, told AFP that the storm “spared nothing.”
One resident, Ibrahim, told AFP of “apocalyptic scenes” as he crossed the main island, having to clear blocked roads.
The nearby French island of La Reunion was serving as a hub for rescue operations. Hundreds of French security agents are being mobilized to take part in the effort.
According to the La Reunion authorities, the ship was carrying three tons of medical supplies, blood for transfusions, and 17 medical teams.
Ousseni Balahachi, a former nurse, said that some people didn't dare venture out in search of assistance, “fearing it was a trap” designed to remove them from Mayotte.
Many stayed put “until the last minute” when it was too late to escape the cyclone, she added.
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