Cyclone Garance, a category 3 cyclone carrying gusts of up to 70 kilometers an hour, was on Thursday deemed a "direct threat" to the Indian Ocean islands of Mauritius and La Reunion, placing both countries on high alert and prompting a race to stockpile of essentials.

Mauritius shut its main airport the previous day, while the nearby French island of La Reunion was set to do the same on Thursday. Garance was labeled a class 3 cyclone by Mauritius -- the second-highest alert level -- with gusts of up to 70 kph expected.

Residents of the Indian Ocean islands Mauritius and La Reunion rushed to stockpile essential items on Thursday, as Cyclone Garance approached the two territories. The storm, which is expected to pass 50 kilometers from La Reunion's shores,