Residents Urged to Stay Home as Tropical Cyclone Freddy Nears Mauritius

Authorities urged people to stay indoors as Tropical Cyclone Freddy approached Mauritius on February 20, local media reported.

The Mauritius Meteorological Services (MMS) issued a Class 3 cyclone warning, with gusts estimated at around 280 km/h (170 mph) at the cyclone’s center. The MMS said the storm was expected to pass about 120 km north-northwest of Grand Bay at its closest point around 5:00 pm on Monday.

Footage by Neil Harvey shows winds picking up at the Outrigger Beach Resort in
Bel Ombre.

The cyclone was forecast to impact Reunion Island between Monday evening and Tuesday morning, according to Meteo-France.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said Freddy was expected to make landfall in Madagascar on Tuesday evening, as a Category 4 storm. Credit: Neil Harvey via Storyful

Video transcript

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