Libya opens investigation into dams' collapse after flood killed thousands
The floods overwhelmed two dams, sending a wall of water several meters high through the center of Derna, destroying entire neighborhoods and sweeping people out to sea.
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The floods overwhelmed two dams, sending a wall of water several meters high through the center of Derna, destroying entire neighborhoods and sweeping people out to sea.
Some estimates say over 11,000 people in eastern Libya have died following catastrophic floods this week. Ciarán Donnelly, the senior vice president for crisis response, recovery and development at the International Rescue Committee, joins CBS News to discuss the challenges facing recovery efforts.
Thousands are reported dead in Libya in catastrophic flooding after two dams burst, washing away whole neighborhoods in Derna. CBS News' senior foreign correspondent Holly Williams reports.
With survivors still desperately hoping to find the bodies of lost loved ones in debris-choked towns and cities, the United Nations said most of the thousands of deaths from floods in Libya could have been avoided. Kasim Mahjoub, a civil engineer on the ground in Libya, joined CBS News to discuss why the death toll is so high.
The U.N.'s grim assessment will compound the pain for tens of thousands of people still desperately searching flood debris for their missing loved ones.
The exact death toll from Libya's devastating flooding remained unclear Thursday. However, the Libyan Red Crescent aid organization estimated that at least 11,300 people have been killed and more than 10,000 remain unaccounted for.
Libyan officials warn the death toll from flooding in the city of Derna could reach 20,000 people. Health officials in the country tell the Associated Press at least 5,500 are confirmed dead. CBS News senior foreign correspondent Charlie D'Agata has more.
The death toll has passed 5,300, authorities say, after a Mediterranean storm triggered terrible floods Sunday in Libya. Two dams collapsed in the city of Derna, where waves rose more than 20 feet, sweeping away families and city blocks. CBS News senior foreign correspondent Holly Williams has more on the search effort that's been impeded by collapsed roads and bridges. Then Dr. Nagib Al-Tarhouni joined CBS News by phone to discuss the situation on the ground.
The Libyan port city of Derna was hit hardest by catastrophic floodwaters caused by Mediterranean Storm Daniel.
The city of Derna in eastern Libya was home to nearly 100,000 people when Mediterranean Storm Daniel struck, causing catastrophic flooding. As CBS News' Holly Williams reports, one Libyan official says more than 5,000 people were killed. The Red Cross previously said 10,000 were missing.
As residents and emergency workers continued sifting Wednesday through mangled debris to collect the bodies of victims, officials put the death toll in Derna alone at more than 5,100.
The devastating flooding in Libya wreaked havoc on the city of Derna on the Mediterranean coast and other places in the northern African nation.
A Libyan official who visited Derna said "25% of the city has disappeared," and he expects the final toll to be "really, really big."
At least 2,000 people are dead after powerful storm floods wiped out coastal towns in Libya over the weekend. Authorities have not been able to access the hardest hit area in the coastal city of Derna, where thousands are believed to be missing.
Rescuers in eastern Libya have uncovered more than 1,000 victims after devastating floods from a powerful storm, an official said. The Red Cross says around 10,000 people are missing.
The city has launched an operation to find the large number of crocodiles.
The head of one of Libya's rival governments said devastating flooding caused by a weekend storm may have carried away thousands of people.
There have been 23 weather extreme events in America that cost at least $1 billion this year through August, breaking the record of 22 set in 2020.
Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy faces a political standoff when the House resumes this week.
Rescue boats have been unable to reach some areas in central Greece inundated by fast-moving, debris-clogged floodwater.
In the town of Mucum, hundreds had to be rescued from their rooftops as the Taquari River flooded more than 85 percent of the city.
Forecasters say the rain will continue through the week could lead to the development of a "medicane" cyclone over the Ionian Sea amid ongoing marine heat wave.
Typhoon Haikui weakened to a tropical storm as it scraped along China's coast, but it was still dropping a huge amount of rainfall.
Heavy flooding left thousands of people stranded at the iconic Burning Man festival in the Nevada Desert over the weekend. Authorities are also investigating a death at the festival. Elise Preston has more.
The entrance to Burning Man will be closed for the remainder of the event, which began on Aug. 27 and was scheduled to end on Monday.