Cyclone Gezani batters Madagascar, 31 dead as port city Toamasina suffers massive damage

Tropical Cyclone Gezani tore through Madagascar’s main port city of Toamasina , killing at least 31 people , injuring more than 36 others , and displacing over 6,000 residents , authorities confirmed on Wednesday.

The powerful storm made landfall late Tuesday with wind speeds exceeding 195 kmph (121 mph) , classifying it as a severe tropical cyclone under regional meteorological standards. Madagascar’s weather service issued red alerts for multiple regions, warning of flash floods and landslides as the cyclone crossed the island with intense rainfall and destructive winds.

Most of the fatalities were caused by collapsed buildings , according to the National Office for Risk and Disaster Management. Four people remain missing. Officials said around 75 per cent of Toamasina’s infrastructure was damaged or destroyed, including homes, shops, power lines and roads. Electricity has been cut off across the city since Tuesday.

Residents described scenes of devastation. “It looks like a catastrophic landscape. Roofs have been blown away, walls collapsed, trees uprooted and power poles down,” said a resident identified only as Michel.

President Michael Randrianirina , who came to power following a military coup in October, visited the affected areas to assess damage. Videos released by his office showed flooded neighbourhoods and debris-strewn streets.

Meteorologists said Gezani reached severe cyclone strength at landfall, capable of destroying poorly built structures, uprooting trees and causing large-scale flooding. The United Nations estimates cyclones cause Madagascar around $85 million in infrastructure losses annually , severely hampering development in one of the world’s poorest nations.

Gezani weakened into a tropical storm as it moved inland on Wednesday but was forecast to enter the Mozambique Channel and potentially re-intensify before turning back toward Madagascar’s southwest coast next week.

Weather experts said Gezani is not expected to reach India . The system is forecast to remain confined to the southwest Indian Ocean region, affecting Madagascar and possibly parts of Mozambique’s coast if it strengthens again. Authorities in Mozambique have already issued weather alerts for three coastal provinces.

Madagascar is especially vulnerable to tropical cyclones during its storm season from November to March . Just two weeks ago, Cyclone Fytia killed 14 people and displaced more than 85,000 residents.

The last cyclone of comparable impact was Cyclone Batsirai in 2022 , which killed more than 120 people and caused widespread destruction across eastern Madagascar. Since 2020, the island has been hit by more than a dozen tropical storms or cyclones , according to the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction.

The UN has released $3 million from its emergency response fund to help Madagascar prepare for and respond to Gezani’s aftermath.

With much of Madagascar’s population living in poverty and in poorly built housing, past cyclones have shown that recovery is often slow and incomplete. The country has struggled to rebuild after previous major storms, and experts warn it cannot sustain repeated losses of up to 75 per cent of urban infrastructure year after year without long-term economic and humanitarian consequences. As the cyclone season continues through March, authorities fear another disaster could further strain already limited resources.