President Emmanuel Macron declared a national day of mourning in the French overseas territory of Mayotte, and announced an emergency fund for uninsured cyclone victims – as people in remote areas reported receiving no assistance since the disaster struck five days ago.
“I can’t allow people to say that the state has abandoned Mayotte,” Macron said on Thursday while surveying the damage in Mamoudzou, the capital of France's poorest department, after the island was hit by Cyclone Chido on Saturday, 14 December.
