Mayotte, France's poorest overseas territory ... Tree branches that had withstood the 200 kph (124 mph) winds were festooned with clothing tossed up by the cyclone. The death toll in continental Africa, where the storm hit after passing through Mayotte ...

France is rushing help by ship and military aircraft to its poor overseas territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean that has been shattered by its worst storm in nearly a century.

Mamoudzou: French authorities Wednesday searched for survivors and raced to supply aid as they sought to work out the full scale of the devastation