Governance
Libya Floods: Government Ignored Warnings
Eko Hot Blog reports that Libya is in mourning after a devastating flood killed hundreds of people and left thousands more missing. But as the bodies are still being recovered, many Libyans are furious that warnings about the disaster went unheeded.
Editor’s Picks
International Rescue Committee Calls For Urgent Global Aid For Libya
Derna Deputy Mayor: Infrastructure Not Built To Withstand Devastating Floods
Hope In Disaster Uniting Rival Governments In Libya
Hydrologist Abdul Wanis Ashour had warned for years about the dangers posed by the dams protecting the eastern Libyan port town of Derna. In an academic paper published last year, he warned that if the dams were not urgently maintained, the city faced a potential catastrophe.
But his warnings fell on deaf ears. On the night of Sept. 10, the Derna Wadi, a dry riverbed most of the year, burst the dams and swept away much of the city below. Thousands of people are dead and thousands more still missing.
Abdulqader Mohamed Alfakhakhri, 22, survived by climbing to the roof of his four-storey building. He watched in horror as his neighbours were washed out to sea.
“They were holding their phones with lights on and shaking their hands and screaming,” he said.
Libyans are now demanding answers. Why were the warnings ignored? Who is responsible for this tragedy?
“A lot of people are responsible for this,” said Alwad Alshawly, an English teacher who has been volunteering at a rescue centre. “The dam wasn’t fixed, so now it’s a disaster. It is human error, and no one is going to pay a price for it.”
FURTHER READING
The Libyan government has not yet commented on the disaster. But the people of Derna are demanding justice. They want to know why their warnings were ignored and why so many people had to die.
Click to watch our video of the week
Advertise or Publish a Story on EkoHot Blog:
Kindly contact us at [email protected]. Breaking stories should be sent to the above email and substantiated with pictorial evidence.
Citizen journalists will receive a token as data incentive.
Call or Whatsapp: 0803 561 7233, 0703 414 5611
