Local officials in the French territory Mayotte fear as many as 1,000 people have died after Tropical Cyclone Chido hit the island off the coast of Mozambique on Saturday. Aerial footage released by the Gendarmerie Nationale shows entire neighborhoods flattened. (Source: Gendarmerie Nationale via Associated Press)

Authorities in Mayotte were racing on Tuesday to get food and water to residents stricken by the weekend‘s devastating cyclone and fighting to stop hunger, disease and lawlessness spreading in the French overseas territory, officials said.

Hundreds or even thousands could be dead in the wreckage of Cyclone Chido, they said. The storm laid waste to large parts of the archipelago off east Africa, which is France‘s poorest overseas territory.