Cyclone Belal was forecast to hit Reunion Island with full force on Monday morning. After hitting the French island in the northwest, causing limited damage thanks to the prefecture's measures, the neighbouring island of Mauritius suffered torrential rains that it had not anticipated. On Tuesday morning, the Cyclone Warning Level of Class 4, the maximum level, remains in effect across the island.
The precipitation with winds of up to 110 km/h took the residents by surprise. Most had gone to work Monday morning, relying on the Class 1 out of 4 warning issued by the weather service. Around 10 a.m., the level went up to class 2. Then at 13 p.m., in class 3: all Mauritians were called to return home. In a matter of hours, the streets of Port Louis, the capital, became torrents of muddy water, sweeping away cars in their path.
In the capital Port-Louis, cars were stranded, with water up to their hoods, sometimes even swept away by the current, according to images circulated by Internet users. According to local media, about 100 vehicles were damaged as a result of the sudden rising waters, much to the consternation of their owners.
The streets of Port-Louis after the first gusts of wind on Monday morning. Personal collection.
Cars swept away by the rains in Port Louis, during the passage of cyclone Belal. Personal collection.
Other images showed powerful waves submerging the capital's waterfront, as well as flooded buildings with furniture floating in the water. Mauritius International Airport has announced its closure until further notice. Banks, government offices and other private businesses closed their doors as soon as the Class 3 cyclone warning was issued.
The chaotic handling of the cyclone led Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth to sack the director of the island's weather station, Ram Dhurmea, on Monday. According to the Prime Minister, the Mauritian authorities had taken decisions based on information from the weather station, but the latter had not anticipated the strength of the cyclone.
On Tuesday morning, while the population was in lockdown, reactions rained down from disgruntled citizens and the political opposition, denouncing the government's unpreparedness. "Once Storm Belal has dissipated, the time will come to demand accountability and determine responsibility," Opposition Leader Xavier-Luc Duval said in a statement.
Damage in Savannah, in the south of the island, Tuesday morning. Personal collection.