Floods in Derna: the city bruised by the flood
Twelve days after the terrible floods which hit the town of Derna, in eastern Libya, the official death toll stands at more than 3,300. The city, emptied of its inhabitants, bears the scars of this natural disaster. Our special correspondent was able to enter the affected neighborhoods, until then closed to the press and the public, accompanied by soldiers from Marshal Haftar’s Libyan National Army.
The first thing that strikes you in Derna is the silence. The streets are deserted, the city center is devastated and more than a third of the city has been destroyed. The only sounds are those of the excavators working to clear the rubble, looking for the missing buried under the tons of earth and sand. The city looks like a veritable field of ruins, reminiscent of the devastation caused by a tsunami.
The bridges, including the two large entrance bridges to the city center, are completely destroyed, making access to the city very difficult. The Libyan National Army has also closed the city center in order to secure the premises and facilitate search operations for the missing. Bypass routes have been put in place to allow entry and exit from the city.
Some surviving families found refuge in a school in the Chiha district, relatively untouched by the floods. Every person has a tragic story to tell about what they call “the flood.” Most of the survivors were welcomed by their relatives in the neighboring towns of Jabal Al Akhdar or Benghazi. Very few families end up in reception centers or schools.
In one of these rooms, volunteers displayed photos of deceased and unidentified people. The center must open its doors to allow families to identify their loved ones. All the people who lost loved ones in Derna are desperately waiting for the bodies to be found. A Sudanese woman buried her husband and daughter, but is still looking for her other missing child.
The official toll of those deceased and buried has now been established by the Libyan National Army, which announces a total of 3,360 deaths. However, this figure does not take into account the missing. The search continues to find the victims and bring some semblance of comfort to the bereaved families.
The floods in Derna left behind a devastated landscape, bearing witness to the violence of this natural disaster. Reconstruction will be long and difficult for this battered city, but hope remains to overcome this collective tragedy.