Tropical storm Elita hit the Indian Ocean island state of Madagascar early on Tuesday — returning to the country for the second time in a week — but there were no initial reports of casualties, weather officials said.
Elita, which left two people dead and 5 000 homeless when it hit the island the first time on January 28, hit the west coast early on Tuesday and was reported to be moving inland.
The cyclone, or tropical storm, brought with it winds gusting up to 180kph, said Alain Razafimahazo, head of the local weather office.
There were also fears of flooding, although there were no immediate reports of casualties.
The cyclone was causing high winds over most of the country including the capital, Antananarivo, and was expected to move back across the island from east to west during the day, said Razafimahazo.
He added that the strength of the storm meant damage would be inevitable.
Lucille Randrianarivelo, the head of the Madagascar national rescue service, said she hoped casualties could be kept low because the authorities had been able to warn the population that the storm was arriving.
”This time people were warned and there are communication and rescue services in place,” she said.
But she warned that flooding caused by the storm could have catastrophic effects. — Sapa-AFP