Cyclone Chido, Mayotte, 2024
The strongest cyclone to hit Mayotte in 90 years flattened informal settlements across France's poorest territory.
- Verified
- Mayotte
- 14 December 2024
- Edition of 9 August 2026
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Evidence
11 figures, each threaded to its source
Years since a storm this strong hit Mayotte
90years
2 sources
“the severest storm to hit the French archipelago Mayotte in 90 years”
Confirmed deaths in Mayotte
22people
2 sources
“So far, 22 deaths have been confirmed in Mayotte”
People injured
1,500people
“more than 1,500 people were injured, including more than 200 critically”
Emergency food and supplies for the main island
100tonnes
“with about 100 tonnes expected to be distributed on Wednesday on the larger island of Grande-Terre”
Internet connectivity after the storm
16percent of normal
“flatlining at just 16 percent of ordinary levels”
People critically injured
200people
“more than 1,500 people were injured, including more than 200 critically”
First French government funding for urgent needs
655,000euros
“The government has released an initial 655,000 euros ($687,000) to finance urgent needs”
People living in Mayotte's slums before the cyclone
100,000people
“The slums that housed more than 100,000 people before December 14 have been razed by the cyclone”
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Background
Cyclone Chido passed almost directly over Mayotte, a French territory of two main islands between Madagascar and Mozambique, on 14 December 2024. It was the strongest storm to hit the archipelago in 90 years, with gusts of at least 226 km/h. Mayotte is the poorest part of France. Its official population is about 320,000, but the true number is higher, because many residents have arrived without documents from the nearby Comoros islands. More than 100,000 people lived in informal hillside settlements built largely from sheet metal, and the cyclone flattened whole districts of them in minutes. Power, water and communications failed across the territory, the airport was badly damaged, and hospitals were partly destroyed just as casualties arrived. The official death toll climbed slowly, reaching 22 within days, but officials said openly that the real figure might be in the hundreds or more, since burials happen quickly on the mainly Muslim islands and no one knew how many people had been living in the destroyed settlements. France mounted a relief operation across nearly 8,000 km of ocean.
Causes
A direct hit at peak strength
Chido tracked across warm Indian Ocean waters and passed almost directly over Mayotte while near peak intensity, with gusts of at least 226 km/h. Most cyclones in the region pass to the north or south of the islands, so Mayotte had not taken a direct hit of this strength in 90 years.
Informal housing across the islands
More than 100,000 residents lived in hillside settlements built from sheet metal and timber, the product of deep poverty and of migration from the Comoros. These homes offered no protection against extreme wind. Entire neighbourhoods were flattened, and the loss of this housing is the main reason the death toll stayed so uncertain.
Poverty and stretched services
Mayotte is the poorest territory in France, with unreliable water and power supplies even in normal times and public services stretched by rapid population growth. When the cyclone destroyed infrastructure there was little in reserve, and help had to travel nearly 8,000 km from mainland France, arriving through the island of Reunion.
Effects
Primary
- Gusts of at least 226 km/h destroyed informal settlements and tore roofs from solid buildings.
- 22 deaths were confirmed within days, and more than 1,500 people were injured, over 200 of them critically.
- Power, water and phone networks collapsed across the territory.
- The airport control tower and parts of the main hospital were badly damaged.
Secondary
- Internet connectivity fell to 16 percent of normal levels, cutting families off from relatives abroad.
- Shortages of food and clean water developed within days, raising fears of disease outbreaks.
- Officials could not establish a reliable death toll because whole settlements had been destroyed.
Social
- More than 100,000 people, many of them undocumented migrants, lost their homes.
- Some victims avoided shelters and aid points for fear of being identified by the authorities.
- Schools and mosques were damaged across the islands, disrupting daily life for months.
Economic
- Rebuilding costs fell on the French state, which released emergency funds within days.
- Fishing and farming, the main local livelihoods, lost boats, crops and equipment.
- The damaged airport and port slowed all trade and aid into the territory.
Environmental
- Forests and mangroves were stripped bare by the wind across both main islands.
- Debris and sheet metal from destroyed settlements littered hillsides and waterways.
- Heavy rain on stripped slopes caused mudflows in some districts.
Responses
Immediate
- Rescue workers and supplies were flown in via Reunion, with 100 tonnes of food and supplies for the main island.
- The French government released 655,000 euros for urgent needs and imposed a night curfew against looting.
- Field hospitals and water distribution points were set up while the main hospital was repaired.
- France declared a day of national mourning for the victims.
Long term
- France announced a reconstruction plan covering housing, schools and the airport.
- Water and power networks were rebuilt over the following months.
- The disaster renewed debate in France about poverty, migration and underinvestment in Mayotte.
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