Anger rises in Derna. Residents are demanding accountability from the authorities. They called on Monday for “a rapid investigation and legal action against those responsible for the disaster.”
“No words can describe this moment: these two, three hours of flooding. I saw death, in person“, says Atiyah Alhasadi, a young Libyan who lives in Derna. His family survived, but his neighbors did not.
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All died following the floods which swept away everything in this coastal town, after two dams broke under the pressure of torrential rains dumped by storm Daniel on September 10.
“I felt like I was in the middle of the ocean, submerged by the waves.”
Atiyah Alhasadi, a young Libyan from Dernaat franceinfo
Monster floods with a death toll of 3,300, according to the latest provisional official report. But due to the very large number of missing people, the final toll could be much higher.
“A situation below zero”
More than a week later, Atiyah Alhasadi clarified, the city looks nothing like the one he knew. “All the landmarks of the town of Derna are gone. The old buildings, the roads…, even the waterfall in the Derna Valley is destroyed! In fact, I feel like I’m in another city. The whole face of the city has changed.”
But, believes Atiyah Alhasadi, if the situation in Derna is so catastrophic, it is not only because of the floods. “It’s because of corruptionhe accuses. Even before, there were no services. This is why, even when internationals send aid, they see a situation below zero. There is no health care in this city.”. If the authorities had warned, if they had evacuated the population for fear of rising waters instead of sending contradictory messages, insists this resident, then thousands of lives could have been saved.