Planes grounded, schools closed and public transport at a standstill: Mauritius will once again suffer the passage of a cyclone.
The East African country is preparing this February 22 for the passage of tropical storm Eleanor.
It is expected to sweep across the Indian Ocean state at midday, according to weather services.
According to their latest bulletin, the strong tropical storm was located at four o'clock local time, 200 kilometers northeast of the island, moving south-southwest at a speed of 20 km/h.
It should pass its closest point to the island at midday.
“
The wind will blow from the southeast initially at a speed of around 40 km/h, reaching 110 km/h in midday”
and exceeding “
120 km/h
” during the day, indicate the meteorological services.
Consequence: the island's international airport has closed since 7:30 a.m. local time (3:30 a.m. GMT).
The national airline Air Mauritius has canceled two flights scheduled for the morning.
All educational and tertiary establishments are closed all day on February 22.
Public and private services are on forced leave.
Finally, public transport is not provided.
The cyclone alert has been raised to level 3 (out of 4).
Very frequent cyclones
A tourist island of around 1.3 million inhabitants, popular for its white sand beaches and crystal clear waters, Mauritius is subject to cyclones.
Around ten storms cross the southwest Indian Ocean each year during the cyclone season, which lasts from November to April.
On January 15 and 16, Cyclone Belal was particularly destructive there, causing the death of a motorcyclist, depriving thousands of people of electricity and submerging many cars.
The cyclone alert had been lifted to level 4, the highest.
But the tourism sector quickly recovered: “
What makes the Mauritians strong is that they always bounce back.
The hoteliers were prepared: they quickly cleaned their establishments and decluttered the beaches
,” Anne Venkiah, co-founder of Lokal Adventure, an agency specializing in eco-responsible outdoor activities,
told Le
Figaro .
“
The population also got to work to clear the paths
.”
A year ago, the island had already been hit by heavy rains and violent winds from Cyclone Freddy, which devastated southeast Africa, particularly in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar.
In video -
Cyclone Belal: the weather director of Mauritius disembarked