SAINT REUNION: Hundreds of thousands of people on France’s Reunion Island were confined to their homes on Monday, as authorities issued the highest alert for a potentially devastating storm.
Cyclone Belal hit the French Indian Ocean island on Monday, moving in from the northwest packing “extreme winds”, according to Meteo-France.
“The eye of the storm is passing over the Reunion Island, starting from the northern part,” the meteorological service said in its latest public bulletin.
It had previously said that Belal is not, however, expected to become an intense tropical cyclone.
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“We’re into the hard part,” prefect Jerome Filippini told France Inter. “We will have a difficult and dangerous Monday”.
In preparation for gusty winds that could exceed 250 kilometres per hour (155 miles per hour) in the highlands, authorities hoisted the violet-level alert, indicating imminent danger, at 6:00 am (0200 GMT), putting all 870,000 inhabitants, including the emergency services, on strict lockdown.
“All circulation is formally prohibited for any reason whatsoever, and until further notice,” the official statement said.
Authorities urged islanders to stock up on food and water and stay indoors for 36 hours.
Expecting waves are up to 13-15 metres (43-49 feet) high, the entire coastline was put on alert.
Many balconies and gardens had been cleared of any objects that could be carried away or broken, and shopkeepers took in removable signs.
“We are not going to play heroes, we were told to stay at home,” Jules Dafreville, who lives in the capital Saint-Denis, said on Sunday.
“I returned in the middle of the afternoon and I don’t plan to come out before… Tuesday morning.” The island’s main airport said it was suspending flight operations.
French President Emmanuel Macron took to social media on Sunday to urge residents to stay indoors. “Be careful, stay at home,” he said on X, formerly Twitter.
The last major cyclone to hit Reunion was in 2014.
But speaking about the dangers of the current storm, authorities evoked Cyclone Firinga in 1989, which destroyed hundreds of homes and dumped record-breaking rain.
Meteo-France warned of a possible “lull” as the eye of the storm tracked over the island, but added, “this should not be understood as the end of the cyclone”.
“Quite the opposite, as the winds will pick up again in completely different directions,” said Celine Jauffret at the forecasting service. The weather service warned that winds could exceed 200 km/h on the coast and 250 km/h or more in the highlands.
“These are destructive and devastating winds that could cause major damage,” said Sebastien Langlade, head of forecasting at Meteo-France Reunion.
Residents were also warned to beware of potentially flooded rivers.
