As search and rescue operations continue after a major flood caused by two dams breaking in heavy rains in Libya’s coastal city of Derna, the Libyan Red Crescent reported 11,300 deaths in Libya on Thursday.
According to an assistance organization, the number of people killed by flooding in the coastal city of Derna in Libya has risen to 11,300. (Source: Bahrain News Agency)
11,300 Reported Deaths and 10,100 People are Missing in Libya
Marie el-Drese, the relief group’s secretary-general, told The Associated Press by phone that 10,100 more people are missing in the Mediterranean city. Health officials earlier reported 5,500 Derna deaths. The storm killed 170 people elsewhere in the country. The Sunday night flooding in Derna carried away entire families and exposed weaknesses in the oil-rich country that has been in strife since a 2011 revolt that overthrew Moammar Gadhafi.
Derna was hardest struck by Daniel, an unusually severe Mediterranean storm, which brought fatal flooding in eastern Libya. Residents reported hearing huge explosions when two dams outside the city collapsed Sunday night when the storm hit the shore. Floodwaters flooded Wadi Derna, a valley through the city, destroying buildings and washing people out to sea.
A U.N. official claimed Thursday that most deaths in Libya were avoidable. “If there was a normal meteorological service, they could have issued the warnings,” WMO chief Petteri Taalas told Geneva reporters. “The emergency management authorities could have evacuated.” The WMO reported earlier this week that the National Meteorological Center warned all government officials by email and media 72 hours before the deluge.
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10 billion Libyan Dinar Emergency Fund to Support the Victims of Flood Due to Wrecked Dams
Eastern Libyan officials warned of the storm and asked inhabitants to leave coastal districts on Saturday, fearing a sea surge. But the dams collapsed without warning. The shocking wreckage showed the storm’s strength and Libya’s fragility. Infrastructure has been neglected in oil-rich Libya for most of the past decade due to conflicting governments in the East and Tripoli.
Two 1970s-built dams fell outside Derna. In 2021, a state-run audit body found that the dams had not been repaired despite receiving almost 2 million euros in 2012 and 2013. In a Cabinet meeting Thursday, Libya’s Tripoli prime minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah recognized maintenance difficulties and asked the Public Prosecutor to investigate the dams’ collapse immediately. Government agencies everywhere hastened to support the disaster-stricken districts, a rare moment of togetherness. While the Tobruk-based eastern Libyan government leads relief efforts, the Tripoli-based western government provided $412 million for reconstruction in Derna and other eastern towns, while an armed group in Tripoli sent a humanitarian assistance convoy.
Eastern Libya’s health minister, Othman Abduljaleel, stated Thursday that Derna is burying its dead in mass graves. The minister said more than 3,000 dead were buried by Thursday morning, with 2,000 still being processed. Some were moved to neighboring towns and cities, but most were buried in mass graves outside Derna. Abduljaleel said divers were exploring the sea off Derna and rescue crews were investigating the city center’s destroyed structures. Drifts of mud and debris, including overturned cars and concrete blocks, up to 4 meters (13 feet) high might bury untold numbers. Since the floodwaters washed away or blocked roads, rescuers have had trouble bringing in heavy equipment.
On Thursday, Libya’s eastern parliament, the House of Representatives, approved a 10 billion Libyan dinar emergency fund to support flood victims. The Libyan Red Crescent claimed 11,300 deaths and 10,100 missing as of Thursday. Local officials said the death toll in Libya might be considerably higher. Derna Mayor Abdel-Moneim al-Ghaithi told Saudi-owned Al Arabia television on Thursday that the number of washed-out neighborhoods could reach 20,000.
The health ministry stated the storm killed 170 people in Bayda, Susa, Um Razaz, and Marj in eastern Libya. The bodies of at least 84 Egyptians killed in eastern Libya were returned home on Wednesday. One community in southern Beni Suef produced almost 70. It murdered scores of Sudanese migrants, according to Libyan media.
The U.N.’s International Organization for Migration reported that at least 30,000 people in Derna and several thousand others in other eastern cities were displaced by the floods. Many Derna access roads were damaged or destroyed by the floods, hindering international rescue and humanitarian aid. In recent days, humanitarian convoys have entered the city after local officials cleared several routes.
The UN humanitarian agency requested $71.4 million to help 250,000 Libyans in need. OCHA projected that 884,000 people in five provinces were directly affected by the rain and flooding. The International Committee of the Red Cross sent 6,000 body bags to local authorities and medical, food, and other supplies to hard-hit towns on Thursday.
Early this week, international supplies began arriving in Benghazi, 250 km west of Derna. Aid and rescue crews have come from Egypt, Algeria, and Tunisia. Thursday, Italy sent a naval vessel with humanitarian aid and two navy helicopters for search and rescue. President Joe Biden said the US would fund relief organizations and work with Libyan authorities and the UN to offer more supplies.
