French President Emmanuel Macron visited the French overseas territory of Mayotte after Cyclone Chido caused widespread damage and loss of life.
French President Emmanuel Macron has landed on the Indian Ocean archipelago of Mayotte , days after the French overseas territory was hit by a devastating cyclone. At least 31 people have been confirmed dead so far, but local officials fear the complete toll could be much higher, reaching hundreds or even thousands.
Upon arriving in Mayotte on Thursday, Macron thanked airport officials who have been helping to facilitate the inflow of aid from La Reunion, another overseas French territory, CNN affiliate BFMTV reported. The French leader then boarded a helicopter to survey the disaster-hit territory. Many parts of Mayotte remain inaccessible after Cyclone Chido – the worst to hit the territory of just over 300,000 in at least 90 years – struck last weekend. The powerful storm flattened neighborhoods, knocked out electrical grids, crushed hospitals and schools and damaged the airport’s control tower. Mayotte lies in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Africa, just west of Madagascar. Made up of two main islands, its land area is about twice the size of Washington DC. The extent of the damage has been difficult to ascertain, in part because of the prevalence of undocumented migrants living in informal dwellings. An estimated 100,000 undocumented migrants, many from neighboring Comoros and Madagascar, live in Mayotte, according to France’s interior ministry. Mayotte has struggled with poverty, unemployment, violence and a deepening migration crisis, which France has responded to with police crackdowns and mass deportations. The government activated a state of “exceptional natural disaster” on Wednesday evening, a measure that has never been used, to help manage the crisis, according to the French overseas minister. Authorities also froze the price of consumer goods, such as food and hygiene products, amid shortages. Local officials have warned that a lack of safe drinking water and poor sanitation conditions could lead to a disease outbreak
CYCLONE DISASTER MAYOTTE FRANCE INDOCEAN
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