Hundreds are feared dead after the storm razed entire neighborhoods in Mayotte, a series of islands off the eastern coast of Africa, before unleashing its destructive force on Mozambique.

Rescuers searched desperately for survivors as they sought to assess the full scale of devastation wrought by Cyclone Chido on the French overseas territory of Mayotte, which emerged on Wednesday from a first night spent under curfew.

Hundreds or even thousands could be dead from the cyclone, the strongest storm to hit Mayotte in 90 years, French officials have said. Chido also killed at least 34 people in Mozambique and another seven in Malawi after reaching continental Africa.