No fewer than 5,200 people have been killed and 10,000 others currently missing in the floods caused by a huge storm that burst two dams in the North African country of Libya on Tuesday.
“Bodies are lying everywhere – in the sea, in the valleys, under the buildings,” Hichem Abu Chkiouat, minister of civil aviation in the administration that controls the east, told Reuters by phone shortly after visiting Derna.
The disaster caused by Storm Daniel occurred in Derna, a coastal city in Eastern Libya of around 125,000 inhabitants on Tuesday – videos showed buildings and cars swept away and almost a quarter of the city erased.
The interior ministry of eastern Libya’s administration says the death toll could rise in the coming days as many are still unaccounted for. It admitted that aid agencies have so far provided lower figures.
“I am deeply concerned by the deadly flood emergency unfolding in Libya. Our thoughts are with the affected people. Emergency teams are being mobilized to help on the ground,” United Nations relief chief Martin Griffiths said via a post on X, formerly Twitter.
Meanwhile, aid has been arriving from Turkey, whose president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has voiced support and solidarity in the aftermath of the disaster.
Turkey sent three flights to Benghazi carting 168 rescuers, two search and rescue vehicles, and two rescue boats.
Alongside that, 170 tents, 600 blankets, 400 food boxes, 20 generators, 1,000 raincoats, 500 boots and 500 flashlights, will also be provided for Libya.
Divided across two lines with capitals of the two rival governments based in Tripoli and Sirte, respectively, they have both declared three days of mourning in a rare show of solidarity.
