Climate catastrophe is blowing again! Libya's desert cities are flooded, and the number of casualties is climbing to a staggering 8,000, with 10,000 missing and the situation even worse.
On Sunday night, a powerful storm swept through the dry Libyan riverbed, breaking the dam above the city, leaving the entire city nearly submerged. The tragedy took place in the Libyan desert city of Derna, and the situation is shocking. According to official Libyan figures, the death toll has reached 8,000, while another 10,000 are unaccounted for. More worryingly, the mayor of Derna, Abdulmenam al-Ghaithi, said the death toll could soar further to 18,000 to 20,000 given the extent of the floods.
It is worth mentioning that this storm has caused unprecedented flooding in Greece before, but because Greece's infrastructure is relatively complete, the number of deaths is much lower than in Libya. Osama Aly, a spokesman for Libya's emergency and ambulance service, said Libya was not prepared for such disasters, which made the situation worse.
Yann Fridez, head of the ICRC delegation in Derna, said the city was flooded by 7-metre waves and the floods destroyed everything. Hichem Abu Chkiouat, minister of civil aviation in the eastern Libyan government, revealed that 25% of the city of Drna no longer exists, which is not alarmist, and a large number of buildings have collapsed.
International assistance has poured into the region. Tunisia sent a search and rescue team of 52 people, while Algeria sent military aircraft to assist in the transportation of supplies. In addition, Germany, Romania, Finland and other countries have provided urgently needed supplies such as tents, field beds, blankets, generators and other materials through the EU civil protection mechanism. However, it is unclear whether the supplies have reached the worst-hit areas, as flooding has cut off the road to Derna. According to witnesses, the city has been split in half by floodwaters, and rescuers must go through a tortuous and difficult route to get from one side to the other.