New Delhi || 17-12-2024
Intense tropical cyclone Chido, made a direct hit on the French overseas department of Mayotte with catastrophic consequences for the population.
Chido hit Mayotte on 14 December with more than 200km/hour wind speeds, and gusts of more than 225 km/h. It was the strongest storm to hit Mayotte in at least 90 years, according to Metrological Department of France Météo-France.
Torrential rainfall was 173 mm in 12 hours with dangerous seas with average wave heights of 5 meters. The deadly cyclone destroyed some of Météo-France’s observational structure.
French President Emmanuel Macron declared national mourning. A massive emergency and relief operation was mobilized as early reports got that hundreds of people may have lost their lives on the small island which is never seen and experienced, such strong tropical cyclones.
The heavy loss of life occurred despite accurate and timely warnings from Météo-France more than 50 hours in advance. The amber alert was issued on Friday 13 December at 7am local time, red alert on Friday evening, upgraded to a rarely used violet alert on Saturday 14 at 7 am.
Chido took an unusual track – it skirted the larger Indian Ocean island of Madagascar which would potentially have weakened the system. Its impacted Mayotte as an intense tropical cyclone, completely engulfing the small island.
Chido subsequently made landfall over Mozambique on 15 December before weakening. It brought heavy rainfall to both Mozambique and Malawi.
