Natural disaster or man-made, why was Libya so vulnerable to floods?
While the floods were unprecedented, experts argue that years of neglect and corruption worsened the tragedy. The process of retrieving the bodies washing up on Derna’s shores continues, as the death toll carries on increasing. “The general state of turmoil also means a lot of bickering over the allocation of funds,” said Claudia Gazzini, the International Crisis Group’s senior analyst for Libya. A concrete example of that lack of public investment is the dams in Derna, which failed catastrophically. “The eastern authorities in Derna bear the responsibility for their judgement call,” said Anas El Gomati, the founder and director of the Sadeq Institute.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 20:44 UTC
Flooding Death Toll in Libya Soars Past 11,000
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Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 20:35 UTC
Here's how you can help the flood victims in Libya
Here's how you can helpGlobal organizations are accepting donations to assist in the relief efforts in Libya. International Medical CorpsThe organization states that it is working in areas impacted by the flooding. International Medical Corps says it is providing emergency health care, water, sanitation and hygiene services and supplies to affected families. The organization says it helps provide emergency health care, emergency shelter and water and sanitation services to the area. SEE MORE: In Libya, death toll in one city could triple after devastating floodsTrending stories at Scrippsnews.com
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 20:20 UTC
In Libya’s flood-shattered east, a disaster of ‘mythic proportions’
In Libya’s flood-shattered east, a disaster of ‘mythic proportions’ An aerial view of Derna, Libya, on Thursday. Up to 20,000 people are feared dead in Libya’s devastated east, authorities said Thursday. Othman Abdul Jalil, minister of health for Libya’s eastern government, said Thursday that 3,000 bodies have been interred outside Derna. The scale of the disaster was apparent even 85 miles outside Derna, the landscape marked by stagnant floodwaters and clogged fields. Outside an obstetrics hospital in Derna, 37-year-old Emad Ayad wore a mask, a vain attempt to block the stench of death.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 20:11 UTC
Libya Flood Death Toll Rapidly Doubles: Now Tops 11,000
Before the AP reported updated figures on Thursday, the reported death toll was 5,300, according to the interior ministry of Libya’s eastern government. What To Watch ForOfficials expect the death toll to continue to rise in the coming days. On Wednesday, Derna mayor Abdulmenam Al-Ghaithi told Saudi news station Al Arabiya TV the death toll in his city could reach between 18,000 and 20,000. Prior to hitting Libya, Storm Daniel caused flooding in Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey, killing at least 14 people, the Associated Press reported. Further ReadingLibya Floods Leave 10,000 Missing And At Least 5,300 Dead (Photos) (Forbes)Libya Floods Death Toll Could Reach 20,000 As Concerns Grow Over Disease Outbreaks (Forbes)
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 20:01 UTC
Dramatic satellite images show devastation in Libya
STORY: The images showed the city's neighborhoods, highways, dams and port facilities in ruins. A torrent unleashed by a powerful storm burst dams on Sunday night and hurtled down a seasonal riverbed that bisects the eastern city of Derna, washing multi-story buildings into the sea with sleeping families inside. Confirmed death tolls given by officials have varied. All are in the thousands, with thousands more on lists of the missing. Derna Mayor Abdulmenam al-Ghaithi said deaths in the city could already reach 18,000-20,000, based on the extent of the damage.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 18:03 UTC
Scenes From a Deluge: Floods Devastate Libya
For days, Libyans looked across the Mediterranean to Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria, where a powerful storm had already killed more than a dozen people. But when it reached the North African nation of Libya, disaster grew exponentially. Torrential rains swelled the waters behind two dams until they burst, inundating entire communities. More than 5,000 people are feared dead, and in the coastal city of Derna, entire neighborhoods were carried out to sea, the local authorities said. ThursdaySoldiers in the flood-stricken city of Derna.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 17:04 UTC
Entire families missing after burst dams kill 1,000s in Libya
The wall of water several stories high smashed into apartment buildings, drowning entire families in minutes. While many towns in eastern Libya saw deadly flooding, Derna, renowned for its white villas and palm trees, was the worst-hit. Fadelallah said all 13 deceased members of his family lived in a neighborhood near the river valley. “They were screaming, help, help,” he said over the phone from a field hospital in Derna. “The city itself has gone.”Mahmoud al-Baseer’s cousins lived less than kilometer (about half a mile) from one of the dams.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 16:53 UTC
Libya buries thousands in mass graves after floods killed over 5,000 people
Daniel, an unusually strong Mediterranean storm, caused deadly flooding in towns across eastern Libya, but the worst-hit was Derna. The dams that collapsed outside Derna were built in the 1970s and have not been maintained for years, local media reported. Derna has begun burying its dead, mostly in mass graves, said eastern Libya’s health minister, Othman Abduljaleel. He said most of the dead were buried in mass graves outside Derna, while others were transferred to nearby towns and cities. The dead in eastern Libya included at least 84 Egyptians, who were transferred to their home country on Wednesday.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 16:50 UTC
First Thing: Appeals for body bags amid fears of epidemic after Libya floods
International aid is slowly starting to reach the port city after Storm Daniel hit the northern coast of Libya on Saturday night. Hichem Abu Chkiouat, the minister of civil aviation in the area, said the “sea is constantly dumping dozens of bodies”. An aid worker from Benghazi told the Associated Press: “Bodies are everywhere, inside houses, in the streets, at sea. Mitt Romney condemns ‘demagogue’ Trump as he announces retirementMitt Romney at the Capitol in February last year. Sign upSign up for the US morning briefingFirst Thing is delivered to thousands of inboxes every weekday.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 16:11 UTC
Cries of ‘Save Us, Save Us’ as Homes Fill With Water
The country is split between an internationally recognized government in the western half based in Tripoli, the capital, and a separately administered region in the east. Desperately needed aid was trickling into the eastern half of the country by Wednesday. But with roads and bridges damaged or cut off, access to the hardest-hit city, Derna, on the Mediterranean coast, remained a major hurdle to bringing in help, according to international aid groups. Beyond the dead and the missing, more than 34,000 people have been displaced, aid groups said. The waters have dispersed the corpses over tens of kilometers.”Islam Azouz, an aid worker from Derna, said he lost dozens of relatives.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 15:51 UTC
Over 6,000 dead, 30,000 displaced after devastating floods wreak havoc in Libya
More than 6000 people have lost their lives due to heavy flooding that caused massive devastation across Libya, reported CNN on Wednesday. According to workers, mortuaries are overflowing in hospitals that are still closed despite the pressing need to treat disaster survivors. As per Egypt's emigration ministry, the government buried 87 Egyptian victims who died in Libya. The flooding in Derna has displaced over 30,000 people, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Libya. Storm Daniel's devastation has made it considerably more difficult for rescuers to remove roads and debris in order to find survivors.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 15:50 UTC
UN says most Libya flood deaths could have been avoided, as fears rise toll could hit 20,000
The majority of the thousands of deaths in catastrophic floods in Libya could have been avoided, the United Nations' World Meteorological Organization said Thursday. The country has been mired in a military conflict since the 2011 uprising that toppled long-ruling dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Local officials and aid groups have warned that the current death toll could quadruple given the flood's force. Drowned bodies are washing up on the roads, and every time the tide comes in it is washing bodies back up." The floods in Libya came just days after more than 2800 people dided following a 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Morocco.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 15:43 UTC
Libya Flood: Libyan city buries thousands in mass graves after flood, while mayor says death toll could triple
Health officials have confirmed 5,100 deaths and say 9,000 people are still missing.Here's a look at the latest developments.Daniel, an unusually strong Mediterranean storm, caused deadly flooding in towns across eastern Libya, but the worst-hit was Derna. As the storm pounded the coast Sunday night, residents said they heard loud explosions when the dams outside the city collapsed. Floodwaters washed down Wadi Derna , a valley that cuts through the city, crashing through buildings and washing people out to sea.The startling devastation reflected the storm's intensity, but also Libya's vulnerability. The country is divided by rival governments - one in the east, the other in the west - and one result has been widespread neglect of infrastructure. More than 70 came from one village in the southern province of Beni Suef.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 15:21 UTC
Today's top news: Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Ukraine
WHOLibyaSearch-and-rescue operations in the wake of Storm Daniel in Libya continue, led by national agencies, military, the Libyan Red Crescent and local volunteers. The Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Libya, Georgette Gagnon, has tasked an emergency response team to support local authorities and partners. A 12-person UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team has been deployed to support the response and relief operations. SudanIn a statement today, the Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, called on all parties to the conflict to spare civilians as attacks continue across the country. The Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, Denise Brown, said the pattern is especially alarming due to its catastrophic implications for the people of Ukraine and for 345 million people facing hunger worldwide.
Source:Libya Today
September 14, 2023 15:19 UTC