2023-09-18 13:27:47
Derna, Libya | UN agencies said Monday they were fighting to prevent a disease outbreak following floods that devastated the Libyan city of Derna, leaving thousands missing, and warned they were trying to prevent a “devastating crisis.”
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) explained in a statement that teams from nine UN agencies have been on the ground providing aid and support to those affected by Storm Daniel and the sudden floods that hit Derna and others. towns in eastern Libya.
The storm arriving from the Mediterranean hit Derna on September 10 and caused the collapse of two dams located in the riverbed that crosses the city, unleashing a flow similar to a tidal wave.
The flood left more than 3,000 dead, according to the latest report from the government that controls eastern Libya, and there are thousands missing.
Local authorities, aid agencies and the World Health Organization (WHO) team are concerned “about the risk of disease spread, in particular from contaminated water and lack of hygiene,” the WHO mission said. UN in a statement.
The WHO mission “continues to work to prevent the spread of the disease and avoid a second devastating crisis in the region,” the mission added.
The team added that in recent days teams from Unicef, the UN Children’s agency, distributed “boxes with emergency medical supplies” so that primary care services can care for 5,000 people for three months.
In addition, the World Food Program (WFP) supplied rations to 5,000 families and the WHO chartered 28 tons of medical supplies.
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