The challenge of counting the dead in Mayotte

How many people will France mourn on Monday, December 23, the day of national mourning decreed by the president on Thursday during his visit to the French archipelago? The authorities have refused to comment. A number is eagerly awaited, but life-threatening emergencies are taking precedence over making these initial estimates.

Anger is mounting, and the Interior Ministry admits that logistical difficulties are preventing it from helping those who have no water, electricity or food, six days after cyclone Chido passed through. “Neighborhoods remain difficult to access. The priority is to get people to safety. And we won’t be able to estimate anything until we have contact with the local authorities,” a police source told The World.

The death toll is becoming a sensitive issue, however. Speculation is mounting that it could be in the tens of thousands. There is pressure on politicians and the media to announce the number of victims of the devastating cyclone, which swept across Mayotte on December 14. On Thursday, Mayotte Prefect François-Xavier Bieuville ordered a town-by-town census. “A team has been specially allocated to this task,” he promised.

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