Derna yet another sign of deteriorating climate scene

Tragedy strikes northern Africa again. It was the 6.8 Richter-scale earthquake in Morocco last week, and it is Storm Daniel from the Mediterranean with heavy rain that lashed eastern parts of Libya, and according to Libya’s civil aviation minister Hichem Aby Chkiouat, “The number of bodies recovered in Derna is 1,000. I am not exaggerating when I say that 25 per cent of the city has disappeared. Many, many buildings have collapsed.”

He also said that the number of dead could cross 2,500 across the country. But Tamer Ramadan, head of the delegation of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said the death toll could be “huge”. He said, “We can confirm from our independent sources of information that the number of missing people is hitting 10,000 so far.” At Derna the search is on for families that could have been swept into the sea by the storm and rain.

There is the fear that the seasonal river that flows from the north to the south and which has been contained by dams could cause a flood as dams burst because there was no maintenance. There is already a report that a dam has burst which was seven miles upstream from Derna. Hydrology expert at the University of Al-Mukhtar in a research paper written sometime back had noted that repeated flooding of the seasonal riverbed was a threat to Derna. He said in the research paper, “If a huge flood happens the result will be catastrophic for the people of the wadi (valley) and the city.” And there is a danger of flood because of the dams crumbling in the storm.

Turkey, the United Nations and Norway are organising rescue teams. Norway’s Refugee Council said, “Our team in Libya is reporting a disastrous situation for some of the most impoverished communities along the north coast. Entire villages have been overwhelmed by the floods and the death toll continues to rise.”

What makes the disaster caused by the storm and rain is that Libya is in a political and economic turmoil ever since the overthrow of Muammar Qadhafi in 2011. There is a political division between east and west of the country. There has been a political deadlock because of a deadlock over constitutional reforms and the west is dominated by a military group.

Though the administration in the east of the country is trying to tackle the situation, it is clear that it is not in a position to do so. An Emergency and Ambulance Service spokesperson, Osama Aly, said that hospitals in Derna are not functioning and the morgues are full. Anas Bargathy, a doctor volunteering in Derna, said, “There are no first-hand emergency services. People are working at the moment to collect the rotting bodies.”

It would have been better if there was political unity and stability in Libya because it would have been possible for the aid agencies at home and from abroad to work effectively to rush rescue teams and help many of the affected people. It would be better if the political contestants across the board in Libya were to come together and put up a united effort to help the people.

It is indeed a surprise that there should be such a series of disastrous storms in different parts of the world from the Americas to Europe to India and East Asia. There will be many saying that this is a reflection of the worsening of the global climate scene, and that storms and floods are likely to be on the increase in the coming years. The argument is being made that there is need for a global strategy to cope with disasters.