Drone footage showed the massive devastation caused by devastating floods in eastern Libya
Drone footage showed the devastation witnessed in the Libyan city of Derna, which was most affected by the collapse of two dams, which the mayor of Derna says may have killed more than 20,000 people. (September 14)
AP
DERNA, Libya (AP) — The death toll in the Libyan coastal city of Derna has risen to 11,300 as search efforts continue following a massive flood fueled by the collapse of two dams due to heavy rains, the Libyan Red Crescent said Thursday.
Another 10,100 people have been reported missing in the Mediterranean city, Mary Al-Drees, secretary-general of the relief organization, told The Associated Press by phone. Health authorities had previously estimated the death toll in Derna at 5,500 people. The storm also killed about 170 people elsewhere in the country.
the Floods swept away entire families In Derna on Sunday night, the weaknesses of the oil-rich country were exposed Mired in conflict Since the 2011 uprising that toppled long-time dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
United Nations on flood deaths in Libya: Most deaths could have been avoided
Here’s a look at where things stand: What happened in Libya?
Storm Daniel, an unusually strong storm in the Mediterranean, caused deadly flooding in communities across eastern Libya, but The city of Derna was the most affected. As the storm hit the coast on Sunday night, residents said they heard loud explosions as two dams collapsed outside the city. Flood waters poured into Wadi Derna, the valley that runs through the city, destroying buildings and sweeping people into the sea.
A UN official said on Thursday that most of the casualties could have been avoided.
“If there had been a meteorological service operating normally, they could have issued warnings,” World Meteorological Organization head Petteri Taalas told reporters in Geneva. “Emergency management authorities would have been able to carry out the evacuation.”
The World Meteorological Organization said earlier this week that the National Meteorological Center issued warnings 72 hours in advance of floods, and notified all government authorities via email and through the media.
Officials in eastern Libya warned the public of the coming storm, and on Saturday ordered residents to evacuate coastal areas, for fear of rising waves from the sea. But there was no warning of the dams collapsing.
How does the conflict in Libya affect the disaster?
The stunning devastation reflects the severity of the storm, but also the extent of Libya’s vulnerability. Oil-rich Libya has been divided between two rival governments for much of the past decade – one in the east, the other in the capital, Tripoli – and one result has been widespread neglect of infrastructure.
The two dams that collapsed outside Derna were built in the 1970s. A report by a state-run audit agency in 2021 said the dams were not being maintained despite more than two million euros being allocated for this purpose in 2012 and 2013.
Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dabaiba, who is based in Tripoli, acknowledged the maintenance issues during a cabinet meeting on Thursday, and called on the public prosecutor to open an urgent investigation into the dam collapse.
The disaster brought a rare moment of unity, as government agencies across the country rushed to help affected areas.
While the eastern Libyan government, based in Tobruk, is leading relief efforts, the western government, based in Tripoli, has allocated the equivalent of $412 million for reconstruction in Derna and other eastern cities, and an armed group in Tripoli has sent a convoy loaded with humanitarian aid. now?
The Minister of Health in eastern Libya, Othman Abdel Jalil, said on Thursday that the city of Derna had begun burying its dead, most of them in mass graves.
The minister said that more than 3,000 bodies had been buried as of Thursday morning, while another 2,000 bodies were still being processed. He said that most of the dead were buried in mass graves outside Derna, while others were transferred to nearby towns and cities.
Abdul Jalil said that rescue teams are still searching the destroyed buildings in the city center, and divers are combing the sea off Derna.
Countless numbers could be buried under drifts of mud and debris, including overturned cars and chunks of concrete up to 4 meters (13 feet) high. Rescuers are struggling to bring in heavy equipment as floods have washed away or closed roads leading to the area.
The Libyan House of Representatives, based in eastern Libya, on Thursday approved an emergency budget worth 10 billion Libyan dinars – about $2 billion – to address the floods and help those affected.
How many people were killed?
As of Thursday, the Libyan Red Crescent said 11,300 people had been killed, and another 10,100 were reported missing.
However, local officials indicated that the death toll may be much higher than announced.
In statements to the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya channel on Thursday, Derna Mayor Abdel Moneim Al Ghaithi said the number could rise to 20,000 given the number of neighborhoods that were swept away by the waters.
The Minister of Health said that the storm also killed about 170 people in other parts of eastern Libya, including the towns of Al-Bayda, Sousse, Umm Al-Razzaz and Al-Marj.
Among those killed in eastern Libya were at least 84 Egyptians, whose remains were transported to their homeland on Wednesday. More than 70 people came from one village in the southern Beni Suef governorate. Libyan media also said that dozens of Sudanese migrants were killed in the disaster. Is help reaching survivors?
The United Nations International Organization for Migration said that the floods displaced at least 30,000 people in Derna, and several thousand others were forced to leave their homes in other eastern cities.
Floods damaged or destroyed many roads leading to Derna, hampering the access of international rescue teams and humanitarian aid. Local authorities were able to clear some roads, and humanitarian convoys were able to enter the city during the past two days.
The United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs issued an emergency appeal for $71.4 million to respond to the urgent needs of the 250,000 most affected Libyans. The office, known as OCHA, estimated that about 884,000 people in five provinces live in areas directly affected by rains and floods.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said on Thursday that it had provided 6,000 body bags to local authorities, in addition to medical, food and other supplies that had been distributed to hard-hit communities.
International aid began arriving earlier this week in Benghazi, 250 kilometers (150 miles) west of Derna. Several countries sent relief and rescue teams, including neighboring Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia. Italy sent a naval ship on Thursday carrying humanitarian aid and two naval helicopters for use in search and rescue operations.
President Joe Biden said that the United States will send money to relief organizations and coordinate with the Libyan authorities and the United Nations to provide additional support.
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Associated Press journalists Sami Magdy in Cairo and Jack Jeffrey in London contributed to this report.
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