<div><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><b>Hundreds of thousands of people on France’s Indian Ocean island of Reunion hunkered down in their homes under a strict lockdown today as a devastating storm that has already left one dead started to rip through the territory.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>Cyclone Belal hit Reunion, one of France’s overseas territories that span the globe from the Caribbean to the Pacific, moving in from the northwest packing “extreme winds”, according to Meteo-France.</div><div><br></div><div>“The eye of the storm is passing over the Reunion Island, starting from the northern part,” the meteorological service said in its latest public bulletin.</div><div><br></div><div>It had previously said that Belal is not, however, expected to become an intense tropical cyclone.</div><div><br></div><div>“We’re into the hard part,” prefect Jerome Filippini, the island’s top Paris-appointed official, told France Inter.</div><div><br></div><div>“We will have a difficult and dangerous Monday”.</div><div><br></div><div>While initial damage was still moderate “one homeless person who had not taken shelter” died as a result of the storm in the western settlement of St Gilles, the prefecture said.</div><div><br></div><div>In preparation for gusty winds that could exceed 250kph in the highlands, authorities hoisted the violet-level alert, indicating imminent danger, at 6am, putting all 870,000 inhabitants, including the emergency services, on strict lockdown.</div><div><br></div><div>“All circulation is formally prohibited for any reason whatsoever, and until further notice,” the official statement said. Even security forces have been prohibited from moving.</div><div><br></div><div>Reunion, known as La Reunion in French, is located east of Madagascar and has a population of almost 900,000.</div><div><br></div><div>‘Stay at home’</div><div><br></div><div>Authorities urged islanders to stock up on food and water and stay indoors for 36 hours.</div><div><br></div><div>They were told not to leave home “for any reason”, unplug all devices, not use tap water and only use the telephone for an emergency.</div><div><br></div><div>Expecting waves up to 13m to 15m high, the entire coastline was put on alert.</div><div><br></div><div>Many balconies and gardens had been cleared of any objects that could be carried away or broken, and shopkeepers took in removable signs.</div><div><br></div><div>“We are not going to play heroes, we were told to stay at home,” Jules Dafreville, who lives in the capital St-Denis, said yesterday.</div><div><br></div><div>“I returned in the middle of the afternoon and I don’t plan to come out before … Tuesday morning.”</div><div><br></div><div>The island’s main airport said it was suspending flight operations.</div><div><br></div><div>French president Emmanuel Macron took to social media yesterday to urge residents to stay indoors.</div><div><br></div><div>“Be careful, stay at home,” he said on X, formerly Twitter.</div><div><br></div><div>‘Devastating winds’</div><div><br></div><div>The last major cyclone to hit Reunion was in 2014.</div><div><br></div><div>But speaking about the dangers of the current storm, authorities evoked Cyclone Firinga in 1989, which destroyed hundreds of homes and dumped record-breaking rain.</div><div><br></div><div>Meteo-France warned of a possible “lull” as the eye of the storm tracked over the island, but added, “this should not be understood as the end of the cyclone”.</div><div><br></div><div>“Quite the opposite, as the winds will pick up again in completely different directions,” said Celine Jauffret at the forecasting service.</div><div><br></div><div>The weather service warned that winds could exceed 200kph on the coast and 250kph or more in the highlands.</div><div><br></div><div>“These are destructive and devastating winds that could cause major damage,” said Sebastien Langlade, head of forecasting at Meteo-France Reunion.</div><div><br></div><div>Residents were also warned to beware potentially flooded rivers.</div><div><br></div><div>Six emergency health centres were set up for people requiring treatment, in addition to the 142 accommodation centres across the country for people to use in the event of flooding.</div><div><br></div><div>Olivier Blondet, manager of two restaurants and a nightclub in St-Denis, prepared his three establishments for the worst.</div><div><br></div><div>He fixed the sofa on his terrace to the railings and removed blunt objects, he said.</div><div><br></div><div>“We’re trying to make sure there’s absolutely nothing that can come off the ground and be thrown onto the windows or walls,” he said on BFMTV.</div><div><br></div><div>In St-Denis, around 20 homeless people were taken to a shelter. According to AFP reports</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>