Libya flood: Death toll likely to reach 20,000, says mayor
Libyan authorities have expressed fears that the death toll from the devastating flood that swept through the eastern parts of the country could climb to 20,000.
The city of Derna, home to approximately 100,000 people, has been worst hit.
Major parts of Derna were swept away on Sunday after Storm Daniel, an extremely deadly Mediterranean tropical-like cyclone, collapsed two dams and four bridges.
The dams were said to have submerged many buildings in the area while drowning some residents.
On Tuesday, the death toll stood at 3,000 while 10,000 were reported missing. Officials said the figures could rise.
Derna is now a wide, flat crescent of earth with stretches of muddy water, social media images show.
The beaches have been littered with clothes, toys, furniture, shoes and other possessions swept out of homes by the torrent.
Streets are covered in deep mud and strewn with uprooted trees and hundreds of wrecked cars, many flipped on their sides or onto their roofs.
Speaking to Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television on Thursday, Abdulmenam al-Ghaithi, mayor of Derna, said the estimated number of deaths in the city could reach between 18,000 to 20,000 based on the number of districts destroyed by the flood.
Many countries have sent their condolences and have begun to rollout aid for the North African country, as the official death toll surpasses 5,000.
On Wednesday, President Bola Tinubu condoled with the government of Libya and added that Nigeria is ready to provide needed support.
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