The message that Mathieu was able to send to his family in Nantes is contained in around twenty words: “I'm alive, safe. But damn, it's horrible. It's an atomic bomb that fell on us. We'll talk again when I can.” Monday December 16, two days after the passage of Cyclone Chido on Mayotte, the forty-year-old who has been living in Mamoudzou for three years has not given any further news. Calls fall on his answering machine: the communication network remains almost out of service.
Airport closed, access to ports extremely limited, damaged roads… This is why helping the victims of this Indian Ocean territory is a headache.
The airport is operating “in degraded mode”
In the photos that franceinfo was able to consult, pieces of wood and tarpaulins cover the computer screens which are normally used to direct planes onto the runway at Mayotte-Dzaoudzi airport. The command room is bathed in water. “There is a multitude of damage, including the control tower which is particularly damaged,” confirms the president of the airport, Martin Meyrier, to franceinfo.
Two days after the cyclone struck, commercial flights were obviously canceled and no resumption date has yet been brought forward. “We are not operating as a normal commercial airport. To reach our teams on site, we use satellite telephones or the Starlink system, describes the manager. We operate in degraded mode, in constant contact with the crisis unit, state services and local authorities.”
Only military aircraft chartered for relief are authorized to land at the airport. “And again, not all models, Colonel Guillaume Vernet, spokesperson for the armed forces, told franceinfo. The reception of large aircraft is not possible at the moment.” The first rotations can therefore only be done using small Casa-type carriers. “The capacity on board is extremely limited, around thirty seats, no more.”
Transporting the material therefore takes time. Especially since access to the runway is not the only problem at Mayotte-Dzaoudzi airport. “We also lack handling resources to unload the material and transport it further to the site”continues the spokesperson for the armed forces.
The airlift must be carried out from Reunion, more than 1,400 km away
Located 200 km north of Mayotte, the neighboring archipelago of the Comoros does have an airport. But it too is not able to accommodate large military aircraft. “The Comoros, at this stage, is not a solution. We have the same problem as in Mayotte”cuts Colonel Guillaume Vernet.
To date, the only solution is to transport human and material reinforcements from Reunion Island. This one “will be a sort of hub for (…) sending reinforcements, materials and food”detailed the prefect of the department, Patrice Latron, on Sunday.
It is therefore on air base 181, which adjoins Saint-Denis airport, that a first A400M from the French army landed at the end of the day on Sunday. On board, “equipment for generating electricity, these kinds of basic necessities, explains Colonel Guillaume Vernet. Today, an A400M takes off every day from mainland France towards Reunion Island. But the two French territories are more than 1,400 km apart, and are separated by Madagascar. To connect them, it takes 3 hours 15 minutes to fly.
The sea bridge is slow and fragile
There is another option: the sea. Mayotte has three ports, Dzaoudzi, Longoni and Mamoudzou. But their access, here too, remains extremely complicated. Many boats capsized due to the wind. On Saturday evening, the French army reported raging seas, with waves of 7 meters and wind gusts measured at more than 220 km/h, which makes navigation perilous. Barge traffic between Petite-Terre and Grande-Terre, the two main islands of Mayotte, is also interrupted. Only those carrying emergency supplies are circulating.
For example, it was necessary to wait until the lows were reduced to “2 or 3 meters” so that the frigate Floréal can approach the coasts of Mayotte, with a helicopter on board, analyzes the spokesperson for the army general staff. She will be joined Thursday morning by the Champlainan overseas support and assistance vessel that left Reunion on Sunday. On board, 180 tonnes of freight, including equipment provided by the army and EDF, but above all survival rations and water. It will be followed by wide-body shipping companies, which will also transport food, at the end of the week. From Reunion, “it takes between two and three days of navigation”calculates army spokesperson Guillaume Vernet.
Main roads are damaged
In Mayotte itself, the movement of goods and people is extremely complicated. Everywhere on the 347 km2 of the archipelago, road clearance is underway. But certain axes remain blocked. And we must take into account the risks of landslides, falling blocks or ground movements, recalls the prefecture of Mayotte in its situation reports.
Around forty firefighters from Reunion Island had been pre-positioned on site before the cyclone hit. They are currently on a reconnaissance mission to determine a plan for “clear, access, open paths and zones”, explains Guillaume Vernet. “It’s a long-term job. The crisis unit must decide which areas should be reestablished as a priority.”
Telecom networks are almost out of service
The violent wind also disrupted a large part of mobile phone services. “Our networks have suffered significant damage. Our teams are fully mobilized and deployed across the island to secure our strategic sites as a priority”explains André Martin, director of Orange Réunion-Mayotte. The company, which is the main operator in the archipelago, has taken stock: 51 of its 54 relay antennas are out of order, mainly due to a lack of energy. He estimates that 99% of his internet customers are “disconnected”. Its competitor, Telco OI, is also very affected. “Everything is cut, telephone connections, WhatsApp, Facebook, electricity connections, roads… We cannot get news from people in the south, in the center, nor in the north, nor in Petite-Terre”deplores Ousseni Balahachi, contacted by AFP.
Electricité de Mayotte teams are hard at work restoring power. “It’s a priority”insists Guillaume Vernet. Two days after the passage of Cyclone Chido, Martin Meyrier, the president of Mayotte airport, has no news from around fifty employees. “They don't answer the phone, so we're trying to physically locate themhe explains. But we are very worried about them. Everyone we have been able to reach so far is fine. But no one has a roof over their heads anymore.”
