Reports of widespread damage are emerging from Mayotte after a 100-year cyclone ripped across the French archipelago Saturday, inflicting devastation that one resident likened to an atomic bomb, with hundreds and possibly even thousands of feared victims.

The death toll in the French territory of Mayotte from Cyclone Chido is “several hundred” and may run into the thousands, the island’s top government official told a local broadcaster Sunday.

Tropical Cyclone Chido struck southeast Africa, killing "perhaps a few thousand" in France's islands territory of Mayotte on Saturday and then hitting independent Mozambique on Sunday, officials said.