France observed a one-minute silence on Monday to begin a day of national mourning announced by Prime Minister Emmanuel Macron for the victims of Cyclone Chido.
The worst storm to hit the island in years, Chido may have killed thousands — although the official government death toll stands at 35 — and caused massive damage.
How was the occasion marked?
Macron stood for a minute of silence along with his wife, Brigitte, at the Elysee Palace, in Paris.
With flags at half-mast across the country, President Macron tweeted that Mayotte’s inhabitants were “in the hearts of all French people.”
“The victims in our memories,” he added. “The Nation in mourning.”
Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said the day was a show of solidarity for the people of Mayotte, an overseas region of France between northern Mozambique and northwestern Madagascar.
Bayrou, who is still busy putting together a new government, gathered the staff in the courtyard of his official Paris residence, Matignon, at 11 a.m. local time to observe the minute of silence.
Bayorou said France wanted to show it was “present to reconstruct Mayotte and make sure the people of Mayotte feel surrounded by the entire country.”
Macron and Bayrou on Sunday held a series of talks Sunday about a new government but the composition of the new administration was only expected to be announced later on Monday in a show of respect.
Outside the European Parliament’s chambers in Strasbourg and Brussels, flags were also lowered because of the tragedy, as well as deadly attacks in Germany and Croatia.
With the same status as the departments of Metropolitan France, Mayotte is classified as an outermost region of the European Union.
Many more feared dead
According to officials, many bodies may have been buried quickly in line with religious custom and before they could be counted.
The cyclone also claimed victims in the southeastern part of the African continent.
Mozambique said 94 people had died in the disaster, while another 13 were killed in neighboring Malawi.
rc/rm (AFP, Reuters)
