France thanks PM Modi for India's support after 100-year cyclone

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday thanked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for India's support following the devastating 100-year cyclone that ripped across the French archipelago of Mayotte on Saturday.

Cyclone Chido, a category 4 storm, tore through the southwestern Indian Ocean over the weekend, impacting northern Madagascar before rapidly intensifying and slamming Mayotte with winds above 220 kilometres per hour (136 miles per hour), media reported citing France's weather service.

It was the strongest storm to hit the islands in more than 90 years, Meteo-France said.

Chido then continued into northern Mozambique where it continued to cause damage, though the storm has now weakened.

The cyclone - the worst to hit the territory of just over 300,000 in at least 90 years - flattened neighbourhoods, knocked out electrical grids, crushed hospitals and schools and damaged the airport's control tower, as per media reports.

French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou remarked, "Everyone understands that this was a cyclone that was unexpectedly violent," during an inter-ministerial meeting.

The cyclone's toll has been staggering, with officials fearing that fatalities could be in the thousands. According to Prefect Francois-Xavier Bieuville, "I think there will definitely be several hundred, perhaps we will come close to a thousand or even several thousand" deaths, as reported by broadcaster Mayotte la Premiere.

Initial reports confirmed at least 11 deaths, but the numbers are expected to rise as rescue efforts continue.

(ANI)