Topline

Authorities in the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte said the death toll from powerful Cyclone Chido, which struck the island over the weekend, is likely to be very high – between several hundred and a few thousand – the worst of the cyclone, which has plagued the region for over 90 years.

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Where is the French territory of Mayotte?

Located in the Indian Ocean on the southeast coast of Africa, Mayotte is home to more than 321,000 residents. The area is one of France’s poorest regions, and Bieuville noted that many of its residents live in “slums” devastated by the cyclone. The vast majority of the island’s residents are Muslim and local authorities said religious customs required them to bury the deceased within 24 hours – which could make it harder to get an accurate estimate of the death toll.

tangent

Despite being nearly 5,000 miles from Paris, the island has been at the center of a major immigration debate in France as many asylum seekers from the nearby African nation of Comoros arrived on the island in large numbers in the hope of finding French citizenship. Earlier this year, the move sparked a legislative push aimed at eliminating automatic birthright for people born on the island.