President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Mayotte on Thursday to survey the damage across France's poorest territory as rescuers continue their search for survivors of Cyclone Chido. Officials warn the death toll from the most destructive storm in living memory could reach hundreds – possibly thousands.
Macron flew into Marcel Henry airport hours after authorities in Paris declared "exceptional natural disaster" measures on the Indian Ocean archipelago.
"This will ensure faster and more effective management of the crisis," said Overseas Minister François-Noël Buffet. "All our resources must be mobilised to help the people of Mayotte."
Within minutes of Macron stepping off the plane, airport security agent Assane Haloi gave him a first-hand account of the disaster.
“Mayotte is demolished,” she said. “There’s no roof, there’s nothing. No water, no food, no electricity. We can’t even shelter. We are all wet with our children covering ourselves with whatever we have so that we can sleep."
Macron was to tour the archipelago in a helicopter and visit a hospital in Mamoudzou, Mayotte’s capital, to meet medical staff and patients.
Mayotte cyclone lays bare the fragility of France’s 'forgotten' territory
Cholera fears
In France, Health Minister Geneviève Darrieussecq told French broadcaster RTL that 10,000 doses of cholera would be available for Mayotte.
"We haven't had any cases of cholera yet on the islands but I want to have the doses ready just in case it happens," she added.
The exact impact of cyclone was still being assessed on Thursday as emergency teams searched through shattered shanty towns.
France's interior ministry said 31 had been confirmed dead and 1,500 wounded.
"These numbers could rise. We all know this," Prime Minister Fançois Bayrou told parliament.
Assessing the toll has been further complicated by irregular immigration to Mayotte, especially from the Comoros islands to the north, meaning much of the population is unregistered.
Mayotte officially has 320,000 inhabitants. Authorities estimate the actual figure is 100,000 to 200,000 higher when taking into account undocumented migrants.
In an interview with BFMTV and RMC on Wednesday, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said French authorities would need to take a tougher stance on the issue.
"We will have to consider new ways of combating the problem, in particular by using a number of modern tools such as drones to prevent the arrival of the boats used by illegal migrants from the Comoros to reach Mayotte," said Retailleau.
