Three volunteers from the NGO Libyan Red Crescent died while helping flood victims in Libya, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) reported on Tuesday.
“Heartbreaking news from Libya. Three LibyaRC volunteers lost their lives while helping families trapped by floods,” wrote the head of the International Federation, Jagan Chapagain, on the social network X (formerly known as Twitter).
Heartbreaking news from Libya. Three volunteers from @LibiaRC lost their lives while on duty helping families stranded by floods after #StormDaniel.
I express our deep sadness and send my deepest condolences to their families and to our colleagues at the Libyan Red Crescent.
– Jagan Chapagain (@jagan_chapagain) September 12, 2023
Volunteers were trying to save lives in floods that have killed more than 2,300 people and injured more than seven thousand in the eastern Libyan city of Derna.
Authorities claim that more than five thousand people are still missing, but admit that the number could exceed ten thousand.
The tragedy began when the two main dams on the small Wadi Derna river broke overnight from Sunday to Monday, causing landslides and destroying bridges and buildings.
Road closures, landslides and flooding prevented humanitarian aid from reaching the population, who had to use rudimentary means to recover the bodies and pull survivors from the brink of death.
Derna and other cities are isolated from the rest of the world, despite efforts by authorities to restore mobile phone and Internet networks.
Source: TSF
