Indian Ocean islands of Comoros, Madagascar, Mayotte are bracing for Cyclone Chido

(AFRICA NEWS) – Comoros, a small archipelago, ordered schools to close as authorities expected Chido to hit the islands early Saturday. Before then, the cyclone was due to pass the northern tip of Madagascar. The French territory of Mayotte, south of Comoros, is also in its path and the French National Weather Service put Mayotte on red alert starting Friday night, its highest alert level.

Mozambique on the African mainland also issued a red alert for the northern provinces of Cabo Delgado and Nampula and said that more than 2 million people could be affected when Chido makes landfall on the continent, which is expected early Sunday. The Mozambique National Meteorological Institute said that it was forecasting winds of 200 kph (124 mph).

“We believe that we can initially start working with an estimate of around 2.5 million people in the provinces of Cabo Delgado and Nampula who may be affected and will need to be rescued,” Ana Cristina, the director of the National Emergency Operations Center, was quoted as saying by local media.