The cyclone in Mayotte leaves dozens dead, not thousands, believes French Prime Minister Bayrou

French Prime Minister François Bayrou believes dozens of people died when Cyclone Chido hit the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte on December 14, rather than thousands as some feared.

Bayrou told BFMTV that he thought “the alarmist and sometimes terrifying figures presented will not be confirmed in reality.”

The confirmed death toll in Mayotte so far is 35, but in the immediate aftermath of the cyclone, local prefect François-Xavier Bieuville feared it would “certainly be several hundred” and could reach thousands.

The prefect declared on Tuesday to France Info radio that investigations on the ground are progressing satisfactorily, which “allows us to think that we will corroborate this figure of 35.”

In defense of his initial statements, Bieuville insisted: “I have never been an alarmist, I simply could not give the number of victims.”

Authorities said it had been difficult to determine the extent of deaths following the disaster 10 days ago, due to many areas of Mayotte being inaccessible and the fact that victims were buried within 24 hours in accordance with customs. Islamic.

There is also uncertainty about the true population of Mayotte, a French territory in the Indian Ocean.

Officially it has 320,000 residents, but authorities estimate that between 100,000 and 200,000 undocumented immigrants may also live there.

“I think (the death toll) will be in the tens and not in the thousands,” the prime minister told BFMTV on Monday night.

The archipelago is one of the poorest areas of France and many of its residents live in slums.

Cyclone Chido was the worst storm to hit the territory in 90 years, packing winds of up to 260 km/h (160 mph) and leveling areas where people lived in metal-roofed shacks.

France celebrated a day of national mourning on Monday after the cyclone. President Emmanuel Macron visited the territory last week and was interrupted by angry locals demanding more help in the devastated areas.

Some survivors spent a week without water, communication or electricity.

Authorities restored water to major parts of the territory on Tuesday, Bieuville said. “Although sometimes it is a little difficult to deliver this water, our fellow citizens have water.”

He also said that there is no longer a fuel shortage and that cars can now be refueled.

The prime minister had earlier said that a field hospital would also be operational on Tuesday morning.

Cyclone Chido advanced towards continental Africa after hitting Mayotte and killing 120 people in mozambique and 13 in Malawi.