Video shows the aftermath of Cyclone Chico, which slammed into Mayotte with 140 mph winds. First responders are searching for survivors. Officials say they expect the death toll to be in the hundreds and possibly several thousand (Video Credit: Amalia Mazon via Storyful).
MAMOUDZOU, Mayotte – Emergency workers are still searching for survivors Tuesday after Cyclone Chido slammed into the French territory of Mayotte, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean between Mozambique and Madagascar.
At a news conference Monday, France’s interior minister said he couldn’t give an estimate of the death toll. France’s meteorological service said the storm, which made landfall Saturday, was the strongest to hit Mayotte in more than 90 years.
New satellite imagery from Maxar showed the devastating power of wind gusts that were close to 140 mph, according to the meteorological agency – the force of a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale.
SPACE TECHNOLOGY COMPANY RELIED ON FOR STUNNING IMAGES DURING WAR AND DISASTER
French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on social media that he will be traveling to Mayotte in the coming days.
Hundreds of French firefighters and rescue workers have arrived on the archipelago to help, according to France’s interior minister.
French health officials said the main hospital in the capital city of Mamoudzou is up and running in addition to a newly established field clinic.
French rescue efforts after Storm Chido in Mayotte (Dec. 16, 2024)
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“It really is a war landscape. I don’t recognize anything anymore,” One Mayotte resident told Reuters. “There’s not even a tree left. The hills, there’s not a blade of grass. It’s extraordinary.”
Over the weekend, a local official said hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people have been killed. On Monday, the interior minister said it would take days to determine the full scope of the damage and the death toll.
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2024-12-17 13:20:31