Cyclone Chido: a few hours before his return to Nîmes, Gard firefighter Michel Cherbetian takes stock of his fifteen days of projection in Mayotte

Pour protéger au plus vite le matériel médical, quatre conteneurs de transport ont été acheminés par les airs par le Super Puma de la Sécurité civile. Midi Libre – D.R.

A discreet visit from Yaël Braun-Pivet, serial amputations and even hasty sheltering at the announcement of storm Dikeli… were on the agenda of the second detachment on the island, as part of the deployment of the Escrim field hospital, of 29 firefighters from Gard. We take stock this Monday, January 13 with Colonel Michel Cherbetian, 24 hours before his return to mainland France.

Barely a month after the passage of Cyclone Chido, Mayotte, this weekend, suffered the brunt of tropical storm Dikeli. Has this new climatic event had an impact on the operation of Escrim, the Gard field hospital deployed in Mamoudzou since December 24th? ?

Absolutely. The arrival of this storm forced us on Friday afternoon, January 10, to completely dismantle the mobile hospital, to urgently shelter our staff and equipment. On the day of the warm and discreet visit of Yaël Braun-Pivet, President of the National Assembly, we were forced to suspend the care that, until then, had been provided to more than 200 patients each day. In just 16 hours, 70 tonnes of medical equipment were thus sheltered in four containers that were delivered to us by air by civil security, and in a cyclone retreat refuge zone where our staff also retreated: the changing rooms located under the stands under construction at the Cavani stadium, on the heights of Mamoudzou.

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During the passage of tropical storm Dikeli, Escrim's medical equipment and personnel found refuge under the stands under construction of a stadium. Midi Libre – D.R.

Until its activity was forced to stop last Friday, what care was provided in the field hospital? ?

Under the direction of a military doctor from civil security, the health professionals mobilized over the last two weeks had to deal first and foremost with the trauma following the violence of the cyclone (fractures, sprains, injuries of all kinds). A psychologist from Sdis 30 provided ongoing care for people in shock. Many of the children who had been mute since December 14 (the date Cyclone Chido hit the island) were able to speak again after their consultation.

Secondly, the doctors, surgeons, anesthesiologists, radiographers and other nurses who were mobilised were in charge of all these pathologies induced by the reconstruction phase that began after the disaster. Resilient, the most precarious Mahoran population very quickly set about rebuilding their precarious habitat. Achilles tendon ruptures, severe cuts and infected wounds, particularly due to the very high humidity level, then arrived in large numbers. Until the interruption of care last Friday, an average of fourteen block operations were carried out by the surgeons and anesthesiologists of the Escrim.

Lastly, and perhaps the most serious: amputations. Diabetes, certainly due to poor diet, is a scourge on this island. However, wounds become infected more quickly and more seriously in diabetic patients. Under these conditions, medical staff have been forced to perform no fewer than four foot amputations in a fortnight.

Since 3 p.m. – local time – this Monday, January 13, the red alert has been lifted. With Storm Dikeli behind you, when do you hope to resume care for the local population? ?

Until a few hours ago, we were hoping for the Escrim to resume operations as early as this Wednesday, January 15. Unfortunately, the wind force, which remains very intense, forces us to postpone the reassembly of the field hospital. The disappointment is great for all the firefighters and professionals of this second detachment who will leave the island definitively this Tuesday, January 14. We hoped to make the hospital operational again before the arrival of the third detachment which, under the direction of Commander Patrice Dusserre, will take over from us on Wednesday. But due to the weather conditions, this will not be possible.

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