Thousands of people have been buried in mass graves in the city of Derna, Libyan officials said Thursday, as search teams continue to search the ruins left by devastating floods. Up to 20,000 people are feared dead, a toll that could largely have been avoided, according to the U.N.
A deluge of rainfall from an unusually strong Mediterranean storm flooded several towns across eastern Libya on Tuesday and caused two dams outside the port city of Derna to collapse.
Waves more than 20 feet (7 meters) high rushed through the heart of the city, crashing through buildings, wiping away entire families, washing people out to sea.
So far, health officials have confirmed 5,500 deaths, with another 9,000 missing and more than 7,000 wounded.
According to the International Organization for Migration, a U.N. agency, the disaster displaced an estimated 30,000 people.
“The situation is very large and surprising for the city of Derna. We were not able to confront it with our capabilities that preceded the storm and the torrent,” Mayor Abdel Moneim al-Ghaithi told Sky News Arabia on Wednesday night.
His office said that the death toll could ultimately reach 20,000, roughly a fifth of the city’s population.
A Conflicted Country
A U.N. official said Thursday that most casualties of the flooding could have been avoided.
“If there would have been a normal operating meteorological service, they could have issued warnings,” World Meteorological Organization (WMO) head Petteri Taalas told reporters in Geneva. “The emergency management forces would have been able to carry out the evacuation of the people, and we could have avoided most of the human casualties.”
The WMO said earlier this week that the National Meteorological Center had issued warnings 72 hours before the flooding, notifying all governmental authorities by email and through media. It was not immediately clear whether or how those warnings were acted upon.
The oil-rich country has been mired in conflict ever since the long-ruling regime of dictator Moammar Gadhafi was overthrown in a 2011 U.S.-led uprising. The conflict between the two rival governments—one in the east, the other in the west—has resulted in a widespread neglect of infrastructure.
The two dams that collapsed outside Derna were built in the 1970s and have not been maintained for years, local media reported. Satellite images illustrate the devastating extent of the disaster.
Unity in Disaster
The disaster brought a rare moment of unity, as government agencies across the country rushed to help the affected areas.
While the Tobruk-based government of east Libya is leading relief efforts, the Tripoli-based western government allocated the equivalent of $412 million for the reconstruction of Derna and other eastern towns, and an armed group in Tripoli sent a convoy with humanitarian aid.
Rescue teams are struggling to bring in equipment as the floods washed out many roads and left even more covered in thick layers of mud. A government official estimated Wednesday that 25 percent of the city was wiped off the map.
Local authorities were able to clear some routes, and over the past 48 hours humanitarian convoys have been able to access the city.
Neighboring Egypt, Algeria, and Tunisia have sent rescue teams and aid, as did Turkey, Italy, and the United Arab Emirates. The UK and German governments have also sent supplies.
President Joe Biden said the United States would send money to relief organizations and coordinate with Libyan authorities and the United Nations to provide additional support.
Mass Burials
In accordance with Islamic tradition, which stipulates that bodies be buried as soon as possible, Derna has begun burying its dead, mostly in mass graves.
Eastern Libya’s health minister, Othman Abduljaleel, said that more than 3,000 were buried by Thursday morning, while another 2,000 were still being processed.
Meanwhile, rescue teams continue to search wrecked buildings in the city center, and divers scan the waters off Derna looking for people swept out to sea.
Untold numbers remain buried under drifts of mud and debris that rise up to 13 feet (4 meters) high, sparking concerns that rotting bodies could lead to a deadly outbreak of disease in the wake of the floods.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.