Earth Science News
AFRICA NEWS
Flood strengthens Libya's national fabric, volunteers say
Flood strengthens Libya's national fabric, volunteers say
By Rim Taher
Tripoli (AFP) Sept 24, 2023

About a dozen women hunch over sewing machines in Libya's capital, urgently making clothes for the living, and shrouds for the dead, two weeks after a huge flood devastated the eastern city of Derna.

In the war-battered north African country that has long been divided between two rival governments, the tragedy that killed thousands has sparked a nationwide sense of solidarity.

"Our centre was already helping needy families, so you can imagine our mobilisation when it involves a disaster of this magnitude," said Mohamed Kamour, the director of the centre that trains women to become dressmakers.

Since the flood struck on September 10, the apprentices have worked at full speed, cutting and sewing fabric for the needy in Derna, a city more than 1,300 kilometres (800 miles) to the east.

All normal courses have been suspended for the aid effort, said Kamour, whose workshop usually helps widows and divorced women gain financial independence.

"That is the priority," he said. "We interrupted all types of training."

The workshop has already sent 1,300 school uniforms, 850 abayas and 650 shrouds to cover corpses to Derna, and a second shipment is being prepared.

Derna had a population of about 100,000 before the flash flood broke through two ageing dams after a hurricane-strength storm lashed the area.

The official death toll passed 3,800 on Saturday.

The flood, which witnesses likened to a tsunami, may have left 10,000 or more people missing, international aid groups said.

Many were swept out to sea, from where bodies are still washing ashore. Others are thought to be buried beneath the mud and debris that carpets entire neighbourhoods of Derna.

- Libya 'unites us' -

Since a 2011 NATO-backed revolt toppled longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi, Libya has seen more than a decade of stop-start conflict.

It is now divided between an internationally-recognised administration in Tripoli in the west and another in the east, whose forces launched a failed assault on the capital which ended in a 2020 ceasefire.

Despite Libya's political split, Kamour said he received the requests of stricken residents from charities based in the east, and has stepped up production in response.

The women stand over a large table crowded with the day's output, which they sort and fold: grey and green abayas, a traditional full-length robe; white medical smocks; shrouds for the bodies.

Karima Wanis, 39, the centre's trainer, said she feels as if she lost members of her own family.

While sewing machines hummed in the background, she said that it is "normal to come to the aid of our Derna brothers".

"We are part of the same family" Wanis said. "West or East. Ultimately, it's Libya that unites us."

- Volunteer effort -

Yann Fridez, head of the Libya delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross, spent three days in the disaster zone where he reported seeing people from all regions of Libya, even the southern city of Sebha hundreds of kilometres away.

People went to Derna "on their own initiative, tribes did too," Fridez said about the country where tribal structures and loyalties remain important.

Restaurateurs have organised meals to feed the displaced.

Business people and others with the means have also mobilised in the country's west and the south to help those suffering.

The International Organization for Migration said on Thursday that more than 43,000 people have been uprooted from the disaster zone.

Appeals to shelter them have spread on social media.

"A family has just arrived in Tripoli from Derna. They quickly need lodging," one Facebook post said. In response, volunteers offered their telephone numbers, a first step in providing help.

Libyan authorities said it is difficult for them to respond to survivors' urgent needs, but international assistance has arrived from several countries and humanitarian groups.

Qatar's embassy in Libya announced the arrival on Saturday in Benghazi of two planes carrying 60 tonnes of assistance. That brings to eight the number of shipments sent by the Gulf emirate.

On Thursday a plane bringing aid from the United States also landed in Benghazi, the eastern city about 300 kilometres by road from Derna.

bur-rb/ila/fka/hme/it/fz

Meta

Related Links
Africa News - Resources, Health, Food

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
AFRICA NEWS
DR Congo trial over shootings sparks questions, tension
Goma, Dr Congo (AFP) Sept 19, 2023
Two weeks into a military trial over the killing of more than 50 civilians in eastern DR Congo, the circumstances of how soldiers came to open fire are still unclear. Who gave the order, at what point and why did Congolese soldiers shoot to prevent an anti-UN protest in the city of Goma are key but as yet unanswered questions. Witnesses - some taking the stand with their faces masked by cagoules to hide their identity - have cast doubt on the official version of events. In a region long pl ... read more

AFRICA NEWS
US farmers, tech tycoons square off over plans for utopian city

Spain livestock farmers raise alarm over rise in wolf attacks

Marshes, mills and Michelin stars: Spain's 'chef of the sea'

Glyphosate: where is it banned or restricted?

AFRICA NEWS
Ethiopia, Egypt, Sudan resume Nile dam talks

Crowdfunding conservation: A Pacific island's plan to protect its waters

Tuvalu will always be a state, even if underwater, says PM

Solomon Islands leader 'appalled' by Japan on Fukushima water

AFRICA NEWS
Courtrooms: a growing arena in the climate fight

UK government's new climate policies

Charles wraps up France trip with cheering crowds in Bordeaux

King Charles's France trip closing with climate focus

AFRICA NEWS
Solar panels go into service near North Pole

Flexible solar cell achieves major power conversion efficiency gains

The tricky path to tripling renewable energy capacity

New insight for stabilizing halide perovskite via thiocyanate substitution

AFRICA NEWS
Making aviation fuel from biomass

Chevron, partners develop a transportation fuel using animal waste as a feedstock

Illinois research leading to cleaner propane production method

Transforming flies into degradable plastics

AFRICA NEWS
Blockbuster movie scares Chinese tourists away from Thailand

As Derna reels, other flood-hit Libyan cities struggle to recover

Morocco sets aside nearly $12 bn for quake recovery

Libya flood disaster displaced over 43,000 people: IOM

AFRICA NEWS
Unusually deep methane leak in Baltic Sea: researchers

Crown prince says Saudi 'closer' to Israel normalization

Ex-UN climate chief has 'lost patience' with fossil fuel industry

Ad firm Havas wins Shell contract and climate criticism

AFRICA NEWS
Asian markets struggle as traders prepare for higher rates

EU seeks to put brakes on China without hurting ties

Markets struggle on prospect of higher rates, eyes on BoJ

Markets sink, dollar gains as Fed hints at fresh rate hike

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.