Libya floods: 11,300 people dead as officials warn of long-lasting distress for survivors

After thousands of people were buried in mass graves following catastrophic floods in the Libyan port city of Derna, international organisations have warned about the long-term ramifications of not giving emotional closure to surviving relatives.

As many as 20,000 people could have died when Storm Daniel made landfall in Libya on Sunday, and the resulting rainfall caused the failure of two dams, according to Derna’s mayor Abdulmenam al-Ghaithi.

On Thursday night the Libyan Red Crescent put the death toll at 11,300, with more than 10,000 missing.

Thousands of bodies have already been buried amid fears that failing to do so could lead to the spread of disease. However, this has raised concerns about failures to identify the dead and questions about whether this will be possible in the future.

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In a joint press release on Friday, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the World Health Organisation countered against fast burials, saying the long-term implications “can be detrimental to the population”.

“The consequences of mismanagement of the dead include long-lasting mental distress for family members as well as social and legal problems,” their statement read.

It said that while dead bodies should not be left in or near water supplies, “victims who have died from trauma, drowning or fire do not normally harbour organisms that cause disease, with common precautions”.

On the shores of a city now covered with mud and rubble, bodies continue to wash up, pushed back to land by the Mediterranean Sea.

Aid has been slow to reach Derna because access routes were damaged by the flooding. Survivors have been struggling to get clean water and other supplies, including electricity, and to communicate with relatives outside. On Thursday, the UN’s International Organisation for Migration said 30,000 people are still displaced there.

[ Libya floods: ‘We saw our friends and neighbours dying around us, and we couldn’t do anything’ ]

Libya has in effect been a failed state since the ousting of long-standing dictator Muammar Gadafy in 2011. It remains split between rival governments, who are propped up by – and often struggle to control – various militias.

The United Nations’s World Meteorological Organisation has said the huge death toll from the flooding was avoidable. “If there would have been a normally operating meteorological service, they could have issued warnings,” its head, Petteri Taalas, told journalists on Thursday. “The emergency management authorities would have been able to carry out evacuation of the people. And we could have avoided most of the human casualties.”

Derna’s deputy mayor Ahmed Madroud told Al Jazeera this week that Derna’s dams had not been adequately maintained since 2002.

“The magnitude of the losses and damage is beyond our collective imagination,” said head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, Abdoulaye Bathily. “This is a crisis that Libya cannot face alone. My gratitude to all countries that have sent rescue teams, equipment, and life-saving supplies to help Libya in this difficult time.”

“The Libyan people have set a great example of unity, compassion and resilience in the face of this devastating tragedy,” he added. “Today, I see one united Libya, no east, west or south. I urge all Libyan authorities and institutions to continue co-ordinating their response efforts.”