More than 5,000 people have died and more than 10,000 are missing due to massive flooding in Libya, an African country on the Mediterranean coast.
According to reports from foreign media such as the Associated Press on the 12th (hereinafter local time), extensive damage occurred in the northeastern port city of Derna due to the effects of Storm Daniel, which struck eastern Libya on the 10th.
Record-breaking rain fell in Derna, causing two dams on the outskirts to collapse, leading to major flooding. A huge amount of water poured out of the dam and flooded Derna, instantly causing over 5,000 deaths and over 10,000 people missing.
According to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies ( IFRC ), more than 40,000 people have been displaced.
On social media , videos of scenes of chaos are being posted one after another, including scenes of residents screaming and asking for rescue as they cannot get out of their houses that were engulfed in muddy water. Cars floated helplessly on the streets, which had turned into rivers due to flooding.
Satellite images released by private satellite company Planet Labs provide a more vivid picture of the damaged area covered by a flood that is close to a catastrophe.
Satellite photos taken before the dam collapsed show a dry village with almost no water visible, but photos taken on the 12th after the flood shows a large amount of water flowing in like a huge ocean and covering the village. there is.
Libyan authorities said, “The entire Derna area was swept메이저놀이터 away by water, and many bodies were washed out to sea,” adding, “There appear to be a significant number of bodies buried in the rubble of buildings.” He added, “Currently, hundreds of bodies are piled up in a cemetery
. “There are not enough survivors to identify them,” he added.
The Ministry of Health in eastern Libya said that as of today, more than 1,500 bodies had been recovered, half of which had been buried.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies also analyzed that the damage is likely to increase further. Tamer Ramadan of the federation said, “At least 10,000 people are still missing,” and “the scale of damage is likely to increase.”
Dam collapse blamed on man-made disaster, not natural disaster
Experts are criticizing that the dam collapse that caused the massive flood disaster was a predicted disaster.
The British Guardian said, “Local experts have previously warned that the dam in the Derna area could collapse and that repair work should be carried out on it.” A report published in an academic journal last year said, ‘If a major flood occurs, one of the two dams will collapse. He pointed out, “It also included the statement that it could pose a threat to the safety of Derna residents.”
He added, “In Libya, which has suffered from long-standing internal strife, corruption, and foreign intervention, investment in roads and public services has decreased, and there is little regulation of private buildings.”
Meanwhile, Libya has been in a state of anarchy since the fall of the Gaddafi regime in the aftermath of the Arab Spring revolution in 2011, with the Libyan National Army, which took control of the east, and the unity government in the west in conflict.