The Seychelles declared a state of emergency on Thursday after flooding killed three people and a huge blast at an explosives depot injured scores of others.
The explosion, in Providence, around four miles from the capital of Victoria, caused mostly minor injuries to 178 people.
It took place around 2am on Thursday and came after hours of heavy rain and flooding, mostly in the north of the main island of Mahe, though authorities did not link the blast to the weather.
Waters from the rains flooded houses, washed away parts of roads and caused landslides in some areas.
Two people died after becoming trapped in their home, authorities said. The blast destroyed buildings, flattened trees and left a large crater.
National TV showed people at hospitals and clinics bloodied with injuries after the blast. No deaths were reported from the explosion.
President Wavel Ramkalawan cited both the flooding and the explosion when announcing the state of emergency.
His statement ordered schools to close and people to stay at home in the Indian Ocean nation of just over 100,000 people to give emergency services and other essential workers the space to do their jobs.
However, the order has since been lifted, according to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
The blast caused "massive damage" and the floods caused "major destruction," the president's statement said.
The health ministry said the people injured in the blast at Providence had gone to medical centres for treatment.
A policeman was being treated in an intensive care unit, the Seychelles national news agency reported.
“The damages are huge and many families have moved out of their homes for security reasons," Mr Ramkalawan said.
He said he was shocked to see the aftermath of the explosion in Providence and surrounding areas.
“It was as if we went through a war," he said.
He said four containers of explosives caused the blast and an investigation would be held into whether the construction company that was housing the explosives had taken proper precautions with their storage.
“At the moment we don't really know what happened," said government minister Jean-Francois Ferrari, who visited the blast site. "There was this huge explosion in the commercial zone."
The international airport and ferry services between islands were still operating.
Seychelles is an archipelago off the east coast of Africa and a major tourist destination. It is the continent's smallest country by area and population, with the most populous island of Mahe only about 16 miles long and 10 miles wide.
