Cyclone Chido devastated the island of Mayotte

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Cyclone Chido devastated the French island of Mayotte, between Madagascar and Mozambique, on December 14, 2024, with wind speeds of more than 125 miles (200 km) per hour.

Devastation in Mayotte

The French island of Mayotte, normally sheltered from westward-moving cyclones thanks to the island of Madagascar, was hit full force by Cyclone Chido on December 14, 2024. Word has been slow in coming out, but officials fear that possibly hundreds could be dead after the 125-mile (200-km) per hour winds ripped roofs off homes and sent debris flying. Currently, most of the island is still without power, and communications towers are also down. Unfortunately, the damage included the island’s airport and sea ports, making it difficult for aid workers to access the island. The Guardian reported that Mayotte senator Salama Ramia told BFM-TV that:

There’s no water, no electricity. Hunger is starting to rise. It’s urgent that aid arrives, especially when you see children, babies, to whom we have nothing concrete to offer.

Satellite imagery shows the widespread destruction on the tiny 144 square-mile (373 square-km) island.

Meteo-France said that Mayotte hasn’t been hit by a cyclone of this strength in more than 90 years.

Cyclone Chido destroyed a local university, as the images below show.

Cyclone Chido hit Mayotte on December 14, 2024. It skirted north of Madagascar, so it had not weakened by the time it hit the small island. Image via European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites/ Wikipedia (CC0).

Here’s Chido approaching Mozambique on December 14

Chido hit Africa’s mainland

After Cyclone Chido left Mayotte, it hit Mozambique on Africa’s coast on December 15, 2024. Officials said at least 34 people died in Mozambique. From there, the storm moved on to Malawi and Zimbabwe, where it brought heavy rains.

UNICEF estimated that at least 90,000 children in Mozambique were impacted by Chido.

The history of Cyclone Chido

Chido was the 3rd named tropical storm this season in the southwest Indian Ocean basin and intensified quickly. At first, the storm appeared to be headed toward Madagascar, but it passed just north of the large island. The cyclone then moved slightly southward as it passed right over Mayotte.

Orbital view of Madagascar and east coast of Africa with east to west line of colored dots.
This map shows the track of Cyclone Chido. Orange is category 3 and pink is category 4 strength. Image via Meow/ Wikimedia Commons (public domain).

Cyclone strength

Meteo-France defines the strength of tropical cyclones in the southwest Indian Ocean using these classifications:

  • A moderate tropical storm has max wind speeds from 63-87 kilometers per hour [39-54 mph] (at this point, the storm is strong enough to get a name).
  • Severe tropical storm (wind speeds 88-117 kilometers per hour [55-72 mph]).
  • Tropical cyclone (118-165 kilometers per hour [73-102 mph]).
  • Intense tropical cyclone (166-212 kilometers per hour [103-131 mph]).
  • Very intense tropical cyclone (wind speeds greater than 212 kilometers per hour [131 mph]).

Southern Hemisphere summer hasn’t peaked yet

While Chido is this season’s 3rd named storm, it is actually the 4th tropical system of the Southern Hemisphere’s 2024-25 tropical storm season. In fact, in August, a tropical depression formed but never became strong enough to get a name. The first named storm of the season wouldn’t come until more than a month later, September 29, when moderate tropical storm Ancha developed. Ancha would stay in the open ocean, not impacting land. Its strongest winds reached 52 miles per hour (83 kph) on October 2.

The second named storm, intense tropical cyclone Bheki, formed on November 8. At its strongest point on November 17, Bheki had maximum sustained winds of 120 miles per hour (194 kph). It dissipated on November 25.

The first three storms of the southwest Indian Ocean cyclone season (the unnamed tropical depression, Ancha and Bheki), developed before the official start of the season. The season runs from November 15 to April 30 with 80% of storms developing from December through March. Ocean water in the southwest Indian Ocean tends to be warmest during the first few months of the year. Therefore, there’s the potential for more tropical cyclone development as tropical cyclones get their strength from warm ocean water.

More cyclones to come after Chido?

Note that the cyclone season for the southwest Indian Ocean is just beginning. The warmest part of the summer in the Southern Hemisphere has yet to occur. But once it does, it’ll normally take a few weeks to a month for the ocean water to be at its warmest. Warm ocean water is fuel for tropical cyclones.

There are 23 names left to go on the list for cyclone season in the southwest Indian Ocean. With Ancha, Bheki and Chido already crossed off less than a month into the season, we may be monitoring this area for a while.

Bottom line: Cyclone Chido devastated the French island of Mayotte on December 14, 2024, before hitting Mozambique in Africa. See images here.

Via:

Meteo-France

WMO Severe Weather Information Center

WMO Classification of Tropical Cyclones

Joint Typhoon Warning Center

Read more: 2024 Atlantic hurricane list of names

Rachel Duensing

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About the Author:

Rachel Duensing is a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist by the American Meteorological Society and is currently a meteorologist and climate reporter at CBS17 in Raleigh, North Carolina. Rachel has previously worked in Fort Myers, Florida and Carterville, Illinois. In addition to daily weather, she has covered tornado outbreaks, hurricanes, and extreme heat and cold.

Rachel received her Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology and Digital Media from Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Indiana. While at Valpo, she was a member of the Valparaiso University Storm Intercept Team, and along with professors and classmates, chased tornadoes and severe weather across the United State’s Great Plains and Midwest.

Rachel grew up outside Chester, Illinois, a small town in the southern end of the state (nowhere near Chicago!). When she was only 10 years old, Rachel learned about weather in science class, and when those lessons were followed up by a tornado outbreak outside her town, she took it as a sign and has been in love with weather ever since!

When not forecasting the weather or reporting on weather and climate, Rachel spends her time volunteering at a local cat shelter and watching hockey with her husband.

Kelly Kizer Whitt

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About the Author:

Kelly Kizer Whitt – EarthSky’s nature and travel vlogger on YouTube – writes and edits some of the most fascinating stories at EarthSky.org. She’s been writing about science, with a focus on astronomy, for decades. She began her career at Astronomy Magazine and made regular contributions to other outlets, including AstronomyToday and the Sierra Club. She has nine published books, including a children’s picture book, Solar System Forecast, and a young adult dystopian novel, A Different Sky.



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