Tropical cyclone smashes into French Indian Ocean island, bringing 100-mile-an-hour winds

CNN — With maximum sustained winds of 166 kilometers (103 miles) per hour, tropical storm Garance made landfall on the French territory of Réunion in the Indian Ocean on Friday.

According to France’s weather service, Garance, which is comparable to a Category 2 Atlantic hurricane, made landfall on the rugged island’s northern shore.

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About 400 miles off the coast of Madagascar, Garance is the biggest storm to strike the region since Tropical Cyclone Firinga in January 1989.

Because the storm is strong and bringing strong winds, waves, and a lot of rain to the island, authorities issued a purple cyclone warning, which is their highest level, for the whole island. Later on, it was reduced to a red warning.

Rainfall totals might surpass 200 mm (7.8 inches) and wind gusts could surpass 200 kilometers (124 mph) per hour.

It is anticipated that severe conditions would persist through Friday before starting to ease on Saturday.

Réunion is located roughly 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) southeast of Mayotte, another French territory off the east coast of Africa. Cyclone Chido tore through the archipelago in December, flattening entire neighborhoods and killing at least 31 people. The devastation caused by the storm was compared to an atomic bomb.

The way the French government responded to the cyclone, which was the most powerful storm to strike the region in almost 90 years, drew harsh criticism.

Three dead as cyclone Garance batters French island

As strong winds wreaked havoc over the French Indian Ocean colony, Cyclone Garance battered across La Reunion island on Friday, killing three people, according to officials.

The 900,000-person country was pummeled by winds of up to 230 kilometers (143 miles) per hour, while the major airport in neighboring Mauritius had to close early due to the storm.

“Three victims,” La Reunion’s prefect said on X.

According to officials, a man was murdered in an electrical fire in the capital, while a lady in her 50s was washed away in rushing water near Saint-Denis.

The prefecture informed AFP that a mudslide near Trois Bassins, in the island’s west, claimed the life of another lady.

Prefect Patrice Latron informed reporters that the red warning that ordered the populace to be confined would remain in effect until Saturday am.

Authorities said that 134,000 individuals had lost mobile phone service, over 180,000 families were without electricity, and over 170,000 households were without water.

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Locals shared images of flooded houses, toppled trees, and roofs that had been ripped off online. Cars were swept away and whole streets were flooded.

“I watched my car being overturned by the torrent, and there was nothing I could do,” said Adrien, who did not want to reveal his last name and lived in Saint-Andre on the northeastern shore.

For many hours on Friday, authorities enforced a maximum alert, which kept everyone in the community, including emergency services and law police, in their homes and workplaces.

Although that was loosened to allow for the movement of emergency personnel and police, officials nevertheless told everyone else to stay inside.

Garance was fiercer than storm Belal, which killed four people on La Reunion in January 2024, according to Prefect Latron.

After landing on the north side of the island, Garance raced south before returning to the ocean.

Heavy rain and high winds continued even after the powerful gusts and torrential rain subsided.

Locals described the cyclone’s power as terrifying.

Vincent Clain, 45, of Sainte-Marie on the northern shore, said, “This is the first time I’ve seen a cyclone this powerful, and also the first time I’ve been afraid.”

He told AFP over the phone that trees in his yard had been uprooted by the storm. “I thought they would crash onto the house,” he said.

“The safest area of the house” is the kitchen, where Clain, his wife, their kid, and their dog were hiding.

After the storm wrecked her garden fence, Aline Etheve, a resident of the coastal town of Sainte-Suzanne, expressed concern that her house’s roof might fall.

She said, “I must admit I’m a little scared,” after losing access to internet and electricity.

Over 800 individuals sought refuge in emergency shelters located across the island.

‘Rare intensity’

As soon as the weather permits, some 100 soldiers and firemen were to be sent from Mayotte, a French enclave located about 1,500 kilometers distant. One hundred more will come from France’s mainland.

Since Wednesday, Mauritius and La Reunion, which are around 225 kilometers to the northeast, have been on high alert.

On Wednesday, Mauritius closed its major airport, and on Thursday, La Reunion followed suit.

Garance was described as having a “rare intensity” by French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau on Friday, while Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said that the military was prepared to help.

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Residents of Saint-Denis had hurried to stockpile necessities.

Fishermen hauled boats ashore as farmers demolished greenhouses. “It is a feeling of being powerless,” farmer Jean-Christophe Hoareau said.

According to Marie Rose Gaze, 61, of Saint-Denis, she saw “all kinds of things” being blasted out of a building across from her house. “Satellite dishes, clothes lines and even chunks of cement.”

She expressed a worry that “the whole building would come down” at one point.