The Mayotte archipelago was placed in purple alert, the highest levelthis Saturday, December 14, due to the imminent arrival of Cyclone Chido, announced the prefecture of this island in the Indian Ocean.
“The eye of the cyclone will pass over the north of Mayotte between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., causing a false lull“, warns on X the prefecture of this overseas department of 320,000 inhabitants.
“The time is serious. Mayotte has never experienced such a situation,” declared the president of the departmental council, Ben Issa Ousseni, on Friday.
In its bulletin, Météo-France underlines that Chido has suffered “a slight drop in intensity in recent hours” but that it should continue at a “significant intensity” over the “next 36 hours”.
Météo-France forecasts in Mayotte “very intense rains and marine flooding possible”, weather conditions which lead to “a risk of runoff and flooding, and sea swell which can have significant effects on the coastline”, specified the prefect of Mayotte, François-Xavier Bieuville.
“The winds may exceed 180 km/h“, he stressed during a press conference.
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