For more than a week, the members of the Soma Tsara Besancon association, the football club created by several Mahorais players and which almost only includes players from Mayotte, remained in the dark. News from each family trickled in as electricity and telecommunications networks returned to the island. “I spoke to my family for 2 minutes on the phone a few days after the storm. My sister had to walk several hours to get network and give news. »breathes El Enrif Ben Souffou alias 'Ben', coach of the club and known by many football fans in Doubs. Luckily, their house held up against the powerful gusts of wind. Other member families lost much more.
On December 26, almost two weeks after the passage of Cyclone Chido, the prefecture of Mayotte officially recorded 39 deaths and 4,136 minor injuries and 124 serious injuries, according to the Ministry of the Interior. Places still remain inaccessible. “And many people there do not see the color of the aid announced”plague El Enrif Ben Souffou. At the club, the last training sessions of the year were canceled and replaced by solidarity actions. Deputy director of the Serre-les-Sapins school group, 'Ben' used his contacts to obtain a storage room thanks to the municipality, in order to store the donations collected. Non-perishable food items, clothing, school supplies, hygiene products, etc. The Avanne-Aveney football club also has around ten senior Mahorais players and has teamed up with Soma Tsara Besançon to donate other supplies. Many players are part of the 19th Engineer Regiment in Besançon or the 13the RG in Valdahon. The donations collected will be transported on January 15 by a military flight. “It’s starting to get better,” summarizes the president of Soma Tsara Besançon, still surprised by the indications of certain elected officials from Besançon : “It was quickly explained to me that the equipment was of no use and that money had to be given to the Fondation de France. But our licensees have live news from their families and the situation. Many do not live in Mamoudzou, the capital where aid is centralized. We don't know what this money will be used for when our donations will go directly to the residents. »
Dominique Voynet: “France does not have a culture of risk”
Green MP Dominique Voynet also knows the situation well. First director of the Regional Health Agency (ARS) in Mayotte between 2020 and 2021, the elected official regularly exchanges with relatives based on the island. “Financial donations remain the quickest way to help because the money reaches the hands of people already mobilized on site,” replies the MP. “The situation in Mayotte nevertheless shows that France does not have a culture of risk. This was already the case when I was there. We have a few specialized units, but it's not enough. We have a single field hospital that can be deployed in the event of a crisis with three ten-bed units. […] From now on, we must rebuild Mayotte but not identically, the vulnerability is far too great. “, comments the MP, annoyed by the excess of political communication and the terms used. “We are talking about a disaster that is not natural. Scientists show that cyclones will be more numerous, more intense and with trajectories different from what we have known. All this accelerated by climate change. »
Financial donations from communities
A few days after the disaster, the departmental public authorities provided their support by paying a sum to the Fondation de France, responsible for grouping together the donations. €10,000 from the Doubs Department, €20,000 voted by the Grand Besançon community council, the same sum planned by the Bison municipal council and paid after the vote during the January plenary session. The community of Communes of Grand Pontarlier (CCGP) unanimously voted for an exceptional grant of €3,000 to help Mayotte. “There are a lot of us who have thoughts about what is happening in Mayotte. It's a disaster. SO [3000€] it’s a little, it’s a lot, you have to do it, you don’t have to do it… I also think that it’s to show our solidarity and to have a thought for these people who are in the greatest misery”underlines Patrick Genre, president of the CCGP.
On December 23, the prefect of Doubs Rémi Bastille organized a minute of silence in the courtyard of the Prefecture, alongside elected officials and Mahorais. A symbolic action which allowed the Mahorese community to make itself known. For his part, El Enrif Ben Souffou is already planning to return there this summer with several other members of his association.
The Red Cross of Pontarlier and the Mouthe college are mobilizing to help Mayotte
Although the archipelago is more than 7,000 km away, its location does not leave Haut-Doubs indifferent. The French Red Cross indicates that donations can be made on their website. For people who are less comfortable with computers but who still want to show solidarity, it is possible to go to the premises of the Local Unit of Pontarlier and Haut-Doubs Forestier, Place Jules Pagnier, from Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., to drop off a donation. At least three volunteers from this local unit will also go directly to the site.
For its part, the La Source college in Mouthe will organize various actions just after the school holidays to raise funds before donating them to the Red Cross. Cakes made by college staff will be sold within the establishment. A raffle will also be held. “We are going to call on traders in the sector to offer prizes. Two parent-teacher meetings are organized at the start of the school year and will allow parents to purchase raffle tickets »specifies Stéphanie Coulon, assistant principal of the college. Some students want to make other small objects to put them on sale: bracelets, greeting cards, etc. This is not the first time that the Mouthe college has shown solidarity. Similar initiatives had already been put in place two years ago for disaster victims in Türkiye.
MS and CT