Floods in Libya have left at least 5,200 dead and 10,000 missing so far

The authorities of the east of Libya They increased this on Tuesday to 5200 the number of deaths as a result of the flooding caused by the passage of Storm Daniel through the northeastern corner of the country, where the Red Crescent was located 10,000 missing people.

The most affected area is the city of Derna, which has been seriously affected by the destruction of two dams. The authorities of the governments controlling the different parts of the country appreciated the support of the international community in the first hours of the disaster.

The representative of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Society (IFRC), Tamer Ramadan, has said that Cyclone Daniel has been as devastating in Libya as the major earthquake that hit Morocco. “We can confirm that thousands of people have lost their lives, thousands are missing and thousands have lost their homes, but the final figures will be determined by our teams assessing the situation on the ground,” he said.

The International Health Organization (WHO) has sent an initial shipment of forty tons of aid to the affected area. “We are doing everything we can to provide first aid, evacuate the injured, provide psychosocial support and other humanitarian services, but the needs are enormous and far exceed the capacity of the Libyan Red Crescent and the government itself,” they said against the WHO.

Communications are a major problem due to the lack of electricity and the interruption of mobile phone and internet services in the areas affected by the cyclone, which arrived last Sunday in the city of Derna, which was the most damaged.