Thousands' dead in Mayotte after powerful cyclone Chido

'Thousands' dead in Mayotte after powerful cyclone Chido.
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Authorities in Mayotte, a French  territory in  the Indian  Ocean, said the death toll from the powerful Cyclone Chido that hit the island over the weekend  was very  high - between several hundred and  several thousand - the worst cyclone to hit the region in  more than 90  years.
Mayotte's territorial prefect, François-Xavier Bieuville, told local broadcasters on Sunday that the official death toll  was 14, but  that the  figures were very preliminary and he  expected the  real number to be significantly  higher.
Bieuville said he  believed the final  number was "much higher ... maybe a few hundred, maybe a thousand,  maybe a few  thousand".
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Cyclone Chido made landfall with  winds of  140 mph (226 km/h), equivalent to a Category 4  storm, and storm surges  of 13 to 28 feet.
On Monday,  rescue teams, including paramedics from France and the nearby French territory of  Réunion, were racing against time to find survivors, France 24  reported.
Mayotte is located in the Indian  Ocean, off the  southeast coast of  Africa, and is home to more than 321,000  people. The territory is one of  France's poorest  regions, and Bieuville noted that many of its residents live in  "slums" — which were  devastated by the cyclone.  Most islanders are  Muslim, and local authorities  have said religious customs require them to bury  their dead within 24  hours — which could make it  more difficult to get  an accurate death  toll estimate.
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Despite being located nearly  8,000 kilometers from Paris, the island has been at the center of a key immigration debate in  France, as many asylum seekers from the  neighboring African nation of Comoros have  flocked to the island in large numbers  hoping to gain French citizenship.  . Earlier this year, the  decision prompted a legislative push to end automatic birthright citizenship for  those born on the island.

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