With the morgues overwhelmed in Libya and rescue efforts becoming extremely difficult due to destroyed roads, the country is going battling against all odds. The death toll has crossed over 11,000 and the humanitarian efforts are continuing in the flood-hit country.
The Libyan Red Crescent, aid group, had stated that the death toll stood at 11,300, while the official number stood at 6,000.
Libya's ambassador to the United Nations said about 6,000 people were confirmed to have died.
Earlier, Derna's mayor Abdel-Moneim al-Ghaithi had said that as many as 20,000 people might have lost their lives- based on an assessment of the damage.
Thousands of people were swept away as Storm Daniel burst two dams lashing tsunami-like situation in Derna.
As the rescue efforts continue and more bodies are retrieved from the mud, the death toll is likely to rise.
Amid all the woes and despair, the residents and even authorities are pointing fingers at the country’s alert system. UN also criticised the government for lack of warning.
World Meteorological Organisation head said that most of the casualties could have been avoided if residents had been warned and given time to escape. “If there would have been a normal operating meteorological service, they could have issued the warnings,” Petteri Taalas told reporters.
Marie el-Drese, the aid group's secretary-general, told The Associated Press that further 10,100 people were reported missing in the Mediterranean city.
Country’s vulnerabilities exposed
The country’s vulnerabilities were also exposed in this situation of disaster. The real question raised is was the disaster a natural one or man-made? Since the 2011 uprising that toppled the ruling dictator Muammar Gaddafi, governance in Libya has been troublesome.
Libya has been divided between rival governments for most of the past decade- one in the east, the other in the capital Tripoli. Among many issues, one major result has been the neglect of infrastructure.
In this photo provided by Turkey's IHH humanitarian aid group, rescuers retrieve the body of a flooding victim in Derna, Libya | AP
Though the eastern Libya warned the public about the coming storm on Saturday, they ordered the residents to evacuate coastal areas but there was no warning about the dams collapsing.
Floodwaters gushed down Wadi Derna, a valley that cuts through the city, collapsing buildings and washing people out to sea.
A report by a state-run audit agency in 2021 said that despite allocation of over 2 million euros for maintenance of dams in 2012 and 2013, the government failed to do so.
The Tobruk-based government of eastern Libya is leading the relief efforts, while the Tripoli-based western government allocated the equivalent of $412 million for reconstruction in Derna and other eastern towns.
Most of the dead were buried in mass graves outside Derna, while others were transferred to nearby towns and cities.
Libya's eastern based parliament, the House of Representatives, on Thursday approved an emergency budget of 10 billion Libyan dinars-roughly $2 billion to address the flooding and help those affected.
The storm had also killed people in other parts of eastern Libya including towns of Bayda, Susa, Um Razaz and Marj.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said that it has provided 6,000 body bags to local authorities.
Aids were sent from countries including Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia.
