Cyclone Garance slammed into the French overseas territory of La Reunion with top wind speeds of 155km/h on Friday, blowing away roofs and cutting power and access to drinking water for many residents.
The cyclone made landfall on the north of the Indian Ocean island, which lies off Madagascar, and was making its way towards the southern part of the island.
The island's prefecture said 145,000 households, or about 30% of the electricity utility's clients, had lost power an hour after the cyclone hit, and 10% had no access to drinking water.
Earlier on Friday, authorities issued a “purple alert”, the highest level of threat warning.
By mid-morning SA time, the prefecture said the worst of the storm had passed and the alert had been downgraded from purple to red.
A mandatory order to stay indoors remains in place.
In nearby Mauritius, authorities reopened the airport after the threat from the storm eased.
Reuters
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