More than 2,000 people are feared dead amid devastating flooding caused by Storm Daniel, which blasted across the Libyan city of Derna, CNN reported. The storm made landfall in eastern Libya on Sunday, triggering flooding and destroying facilities along its path.
Ahmed Mismari, the spokesperson for the Libyan National Army (LNA) that controls eastern Libya, said in a televised news conference that the disaster came after dams above Derna had collapsed, "sweeping whole neighborhoods with their residents into the sea".
''As a consequence, three bridges were destroyed. The flowing water carried away entire neighborhoods, eventually depositing them into the sea,'' he said.
Several photos and videos have surfaced online showing the magnitude of damage and destruction caused by the floods. Clips shared on X showed drowned cars, collapsed buildings, and torrents of water surging across streets.
Here are some videos:
Othman Abduljalil, the health minister in Libya's eastern parliament-backed government told Libya's Almasar TV from Derna on Monday, ''The situation [in Derna] was catastrophic… The bodies are still lying in many places.''
Jalel Harchaoui, a Libya specialist, told the BBC the death toll could reach as many as "several thousand" people. 7 Libyan army personnel have also gone missing during ongoing rescue efforts.
Last week, the storm caused devastating flooding in Greece before moving into the Mediterranean and transforming into a tropical-like cyclone known as a medicane.
Libya, a country of six million people, has been divided between rival administrations in the east and west since 2014, following the 2011 uprising against late dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Both governments declared three days of mourning after Storm Daniel swept in.
