According to a report established Tuesday by the authorities, at least 22 people have lost their lives in Mayotte due to Cyclone Chido, and more than 1,300 others are injured.
Emmanuel Macron is expected there on Thursday, and François Bayrou will go there as soon as “(s)our government is formed”.
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Mayotte hit by powerful cyclone Chido
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120 TONS OF FOOD
The priority is to ensure the “vital needs” of residents in terms of water and food, Bruno Retailleau insisted on Monday. Some 120 tonnes of food are to be distributed this Wednesday on the two Mahoran islands, according to the authorities.
“Everyone is rushing to the stores for water. It’s a general shortage,” Ali Ahmidi Youssouf, a 39-year-old Comorian, told AFP.
THE LARGEST SLUM IN THE ARCHIPELAGO DESTROYED
The human toll is still uncertain: at least 22 dead and more than 1,300 injured. Many people are still missing, particularly in Kawéni, the largest slum in France, where 20,000 people were crowded together. The health situation is worrying and water is sorely lacking.
BONJOUR
Welcome to this live broadcast dedicated to the Mayotte archipelago, hard hit after the passage of Cyclone Chido during the night from Friday to Saturday. Follow here, throughout the day, the latest news.
Emmanuel Macron “will be Thursday in Mayotte”French archipelago in the Indian Ocean devastated by Cyclone Chido, the Élysée announced Tuesday evening, December 17. The head of state said on Monday that he would go there in the coming days.
For his part, François Bayrou announced Tuesday evening on France 2 that he would go to Mayotte as soon as “(s)our government will be formed”after Emmanuel Macron. “As soon as the President of the Republic has left (Mayotte), and the government has been formed, I will obviously go to mobilize all the resources of the State”replied the Prime Minister, questioned during a special broadcast. Mr. Bayrou had to face numerous criticisms for having chaired the Pau Municipal Council on Monday evening, after participating in a crisis meeting in Mayotte by videoconference.
A curfew is in place in Mayotte from 10:00 p.m. local time until 4:00 a.m. to ensure security and prevent looting, while residents lack everything. Some 100 tonnes of food will be distributed on Wednesday in Grande-Terre, and 20 tonnes in the two communes of Petite-Terre, according to the authorities. Three barges will be “functional” Wednesday to transport relief personnel, food and water between the two islands, isolated from each other.
The situation remains very difficult in the archipelago, where housing but also public infrastructure were badly damaged by the passage of the cyclone. Tuesday evening, the electricity was “recovering” according to the authorities, while the mobile telephone network still remained 80% unavailable.
The provisional toll reached 22 dead and 1,373 injured, according to figures communicated Tuesday evening by the Ministry of the Interior. But the authorities fear “several hundred” dead, maybe even “a few thousand” in the poorest department in France.
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