‘We feel completely abandoned’: Mayotte residents call for help after devastating Cyclone Chido

Richard Kagoe
BBC News, Nairobi

image source, Reuters

The latest footage from Mayotte paints a clearer picture of the devastation caused by the cyclone.

In the capital, Mamoudzou, street after street is littered with trees and debris, and every house appears to be damaged. A nurse at the main hospital said there was nothing left.

Residents have been queuing outside shops in search of water and other basic supplies.

Mayotte is mostly cut off from the rest of the world after Cyclone Chido devastated the French territory and left communications severely disrupted.

Families are desperately trying to locate missing relatives, but movement across the island is nearly impossible as roads remain blocked.

Scenes of destruction are everywhere – houses flattened, possessions scattered and lives shattered. All lost in an instant.

Some victims sift through the rubble, looking for anything salvageable. Emergency workers are racing against time to find survivors and restore essential services, but for victims the wait for help feels agonizingly long.

Chido’s influence was not limited to Mayotte. In northern Mozambique, the storm claimed three lives, including a three-year-old girl in Nampula province.