The trail of destruction from Cyclone Batsirai in Madagascar left at least 92 dead, according to official figures updated by the National Office for Risk and Disaster Management on Wednesday (9). The number could increase as isolated areas are accessed by government and relief efforts.
The storm came from the Indian Ocean and initially hit a sparsely inhabited and mostly agricultural coastal strip of Madagascar, with winds of around 200 km/h. Afterwards, it crossed a large part of the island country until it resumed its route towards the sea.
“It’s a catastrophe,” district deputy Brunelle Razafintsiandrofa told AFP by phone. “Most of the victims died in the collapse of their houses.”
According to the authorities responsible for disaster management, more than 94,000 people were affected and about 60,000 were displaced. Humanitarian aid from NGOs and UN agencies (United Nations) is already being mobilized.
Homes, medical centers and schools were destroyed by the cyclone, which also flattened roads and left 17 bridges impassable. The capital Antananarivo and the country’s main port of Tamatave, northeast of the island, were not hit.
France announced that it would send 60 firefighters to help set up a water purification unit, as well as “75 tons of urgent aid”.
Madagascar has been a French colony since the end of the 19th century, and became an independent republic in 1960. Today, according to the UN, the country occupies the 164th position among the 189 nations that make up the HDI (Human Development Index) ranking.
In addition to the deaths and destruction of infrastructure, the cyclone affected rice plantations in the center of the country. “Rice crops have been lost. It is the main crop of the Malagasy people and their food security will be severely affected in the next three to six months if we do not act quickly,” said Pasqualina DiSirio, director of the World Food Program (WFP) in Madagascar.
In the city of Mananjary, the epicenter of the destruction about 350km south of the capital, President Andry Rajoelina promised on Monday that all that had been destroyed would be restored.
The affected cities remain under rubble.
