Four days after Cyclone Daniel devastated Derna in eastern Libya, sweeping away entire families and their homes, Libyans are trying to understand how such a disaster could happen. However, in the hours leading up to catastrophic flooding caused by the failure of dams upstream of the city, authorities and residents seemed aware of the imminent risk.
However, local sources and government statements indicate that the situation was handled in a confusing and incomplete manner, hours before the disaster and on the night of heavy rain.
On September 14, the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization said that “most of the casualties” could have been avoided with adequate warnings and evacuations.
By the time it reached the Libyan coast, the cyclone had already caused serious damage to Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria. International weather observers have warned Libyan authorities of the danger, split between two governments, one in the east and the other in the west of the country. On September 9, Cyrenaica authorities declared a curfew in several cities, highlighting particular concerns about Benghazi, the region’s main center, which was feared to be hit hardest.
Osama Hamad, the prime minister of the eastern government, asked Minister Sami al-Dawi to form a team to respond to emergencies. In the end, Benghazi was largely saved, although roads connecting the coastal cities were damaged. The rain concentrated in the mountainous region of Jebel al-Akhdar (Green Mountain), where heavy rain fell for seventeen hours until midnight on 10 September.
That night, the first calls for help came from the towns and villages of Jabal al-Akhdar, where the waters were rapidly rising, trapping residents in their homes. Although areas below the mountain are known to be most prone to flooding, local authorities and emergency services have not ordered evacuations. These areas were then declared a “disaster”. But it’s too late. The situation is made worse by the fact that Libya is divided between two competing governments: the UN-recognized administration in Tripoli and the administration in the east supported by a majority of parliamentarians and military commander Khalifa Haftar.
The government of national unity in Tripoli issued a statement warning of the possibility of heavy rain in Jabal al-Akhdar and assuring that emergency crews were ready to intervene, although it has no authority or presence in the east. On the evening of September 10, Prime Minister Abdul Hamid al-Dbaiba said he had instructed relevant departments to provide support if necessary, and assured that his government would take responsibility for compensating people for the damage.
Derna Mayor Abdel Moneim al-Ghaiti imposed a curfew on the city at 7 p.m., calling it preparations for a cyclone that was already crossing the region, including the city of Al Bayda, a hundred kilometers away. Images were published of Al-Haiti leading the operation and enforcing a curfew as water levels quickly rose, and videos of citizens locked in their homes circulated online. Meanwhile, experts, some of whom noted in 2022 that dams in the Wadi Derna (seasonal river) valley were in danger of collapsing, sounded the alarm and asked residents to be warned. However, local authorities and rival governments continued to insist that everything was under control.
Since 23:00 on September 10, emergency services have received constant calls from people stranded, especially in the rural areas above Derna, where houses were under water. In the city, people living in buildings along the Wadi Derna valley saw an unprecedented flow of water into the canal connecting the dams and the sea. However, the public is still urged to stay at home.
The water rose with extreme force, overflowed its banks and flooded streets and buildings. Rescue teams were dispatched to several areas at half past midnight with reports of people trapped and at risk of drowning.
A resident of Al-Bayda, whose house was almost completely flooded, received a video from Derna showing the flooding of the canal: “I immediately called my relatives who lived nearby and told them to urgently move to a safe place and warn others.”
Some survivors who took refuge in al-Bayda said they heard an explosion at 2.30 am. The dam has collapsed.
Parts of Derna, including the old town, were damaged by flooding. Residents of the street along the canal were washed out to sea. The force of the water swept away eight-story buildings. The flow rate was estimated at 3,500 cubic meters of water per hour. “We were on the roof of our four-story building, trying to escape,” says one of the survivors. “But I’m the only one left from my family. The rest were overwhelmed by water, and I found myself alone on one of the city streets. I’m still looking for the bodies of my family members.”
Today Derna counts her dead and, if she can, buries them. The city almost immediately ran out of body bags. The bodies were transported by truck from the city center to Dar al-Hamar in the south and to Martuba, where thousands were buried. Many corpses remained on the street awaiting identification.
The sea is returning more and more every day. Divers went to look for them at sea, but the water was too rough. Freediving instructor Deya Abu Zariba said: “The main challenge for the divers was the muddy water, reddish with clay, which made visibility difficult. The seabed is also littered with sharp rocks and debris, which are also dangerous for divers.” ◆ adj.
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