Thousands are feared dead in Libya after Storm Daniel caused devastating flooding that swept away entire neighborhoods and destroyed homes in several coastal cities, authorities said Monday.
The confirmed death toll from the weekend floods was 38, according to health authorities. But the count did not include Derna, the hardest-hit city, which had become inaccessible.
Videos of residents posted online showed widespread devastation. Entire areas of residential blocks were razed along Wadi Derna, a river that runs down from the mountains to the city center. Multi-story apartment buildings that once stood back from the river collapsed into the mud.
The Derna municipal council announced the collapse of two dams due to heavy rains.
In a telephone interview with al-Masar television station on Monday, Prime Minister Ossama Hamad of Libya's eastern government said 2,000 people were feared dead in Derna and that thousands were still missing. The area had been declared a disaster zone.
At least 23 people died in the eastern city of Bayda, the city's main medical center said.
According to the Ambulance and Emergency Authority, another seven people died in the coastal city of Sousse in northeastern Libya. Another seven people were reported dead in the cities of Shahatt and Omar al-Mokhtar, the minister said.
The Libyan Red Crescent said it lost contact with one of its workers while trying to help a family trapped in Bayda. Dozens more people were reported missing and authorities fear they may have died in floods that destroyed homes and other property in several cities in eastern Libya, according to local media.
Essam Abu Zeriba, interior minister of Libya's eastern government, said more than 5,000 people were expected to be missing in Derna. He said many of the victims were swept into the Mediterranean.
