“A risk of marine submersion on the coasts”: pre-alert before the Dikeledi storm, the return of teachers postponed in Mayotte

The alert has been in effect since 9:00 a.m. local time (7:00 a.m. in Paris), this source said in a press release.

At the time of passage near Mayotte of this low pressure system which could then have reached the stage of “severe tropical storm”Météo-France forecasts “wind gusts of 90-100 km/h” et “a risk of marine submersion on the coasts”. Of “heavy discontinuous precipitation” are expected from Saturday evening and until the night of Sunday to Monday.

On December 14, Mayotte was devastated by Chido, accompanied by wind gusts exceeding 220 km/h.

The passage of this intense tropical cyclonethe most devastating that the small French archipelago in the Indian Ocean has experienced in 90 years, left at least 39 dead and more than 5,600 injureddestroying the many precarious homes in the poorest department in France.

Tears est “an event of lesser importance than Chido. On the other hand, it is a serious event”, declared prefect François-Xavier Bieuville on the Mayotte plateau.

He thus announced that a decision had been taken to “postpone a few days“the administrative school year scheduled for January 13 “to absorb this new shock, to ensure that we are prepared for it”.

He added that the start date would be announced “in the next few hours by the rector”.

More energy for storms

Before the Dikeledi transit, the prefecture recommended that residents anticipate all drug treatments in the event of pathologies and “prepare lighting reserves”, “water, non-perishable food and a first aid kit”.

People with renal or respiratory insufficiency are also advised to contact “without delay” their usual healthcare facility.

The prefect asked residents to cancel outdoor outings planned for this weekend, to fix objects and obstacles “likely to constitute dangers or projectiles” in the event of gusts of wind and to facilitate the evacuation of water.

Cyclones usually develop in the Indian Ocean from November to March, but this year, surface waters are close to 30°C in the area, which provides more energy to stormsa global warming phenomenon also observed this fall in the North Atlantic and the Pacific.