Libya floods destroy quarter of city, leaving thousands dead

• A massive Mediterranean storm resulted in devastating floods in Libya.
• The floodwaters burst dams, destroyed buildings, and submerged a significant portion.
• Libya is already plagued by political divisions and a crumbling infrastructure.

A massive Mediterranean storm resulted in devastating floods in Libya, causing thousands of casualties and leaving around 10,000 individuals missing.

The floodwaters burst dams, destroyed buildings, and submerged a significant portion of the eastern coastal city of Derna.

Reports regarding the number of casualties vary, with a senior medic in Derna estimating over 2,000 deaths, while officials in eastern Libya suggested a toll exceeding 5,000.

The storm, named Daniel, struck a nation that has been plagued by over a decade of conflict, leaving it politically divided and in a state of disarray.

Derna, with a population of approximately 125,000, witnessed the destruction of entire neighborhoods, as buildings were washed away and vehicles overturned by the torrential floodwaters resulting from dam breaches.

Hospital director Mohamad al-Qabisi reported 1,700 deaths in one district and 500 in the other, with numerous bodies visible on hospital grounds as people desperately searched for missing family members.

The extent of the disaster was evident when Hichem Abu Chkiouat, the minister of civil aviation in the eastern administration, stated that around 25% of the city had disappeared, with numerous buildings collapsing.

Al-Masar television, a local channel, reported that the interior minister of the eastern administration had stated over 5,000 casualties.

Other cities in eastern Libya, including Benghazi, also suffered the consequences of the storm.

Tamer Ramadan, who headed a delegation from the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, anticipated a substantial death toll, while stating that the number of missing persons had reached 10,000.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs activated emergency response teams to assist on the ground.

International aid, including search and rescue vehicles, rescue boats, generators, and food, was rapidly dispatched to Libya by countries like Turkey.

The floods took many by surprise as they were unprepared for the catastrophe. Families were torn apart, with numerous people losing contact with their loved ones. The tragedy unfolded as homes and livelihoods were devastated, leaving communities in turmoil.

The city of Derna had been safeguarded from flooding by dams due to its location near a seasonal river that flowed from the highlands to the south.

However, a video posted on social media displayed the remnants of a collapsed dam upstream from the city, surrounded by pools of muddy water.

The absence of regular maintenance on the dams had previously been highlighted as a potential threat in a research paper published last year by hydrologist Abdelwanees A. R. Ashoor of Libya’s Omar Al-Mukhtar University.

World leaders, including Pope Francis and U.S. President Joe Biden, expressed their condolences and offered assistance to Libya in the wake of this devastating natural disaster.

Libya, already plagued by political divisions and a crumbling infrastructure, now faces the monumental task of recovering from this catastrophic event.

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