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BBC Pidgin of Tuesday, 12 September 2023

Source: BBC

Over 1,000 deadi bodi and 10,000 missing afta ogbonge floods for Libya

Dam burst for Libya city of Derna, wipe out one quarter of di city during one heavy storm Dam burst for Libya city of Derna, wipe out one quarter of di city during one heavy storm

Dam burst for Libya city of Derna, wipe out one quarter of di city during one heavy storm.

Libya administration and di Red Crescent tok on Tuesday say, dem dey fear say 10,000 pipo still dey miss across di kontri sake of di flood.

So far, dem don discover more dan 1,500 deadi bodi already for di city of Derna alone, and officials dey expect say di number of pipo wey die dey much higher.

One minister, Hisham Chkiouat, from di eastern-based goment, wey visit di eastern port of Derna tell BBC say: "Wetin I take eyes see shock me, e be like tsunami."

Most part of Derna, wey be home to about 100,000 pipo, dey under water. Two dams and four bridges collapse afta Storm Daniel blow through di Mediterranean, enta di kontri.

Di storm wey hit on Sunday, also affect oda cities for east of di kontri like Benghazi, Soussa and Al-Marj

Chkiouat, di kontri aviation minister and part of di eastern goment emergency response committee, tell BBC Newshour say di collapse of one of di dams for south of Derna drag most parts of di city enta sea.

One Reuters tori pesin say as im bin go Derna, city wey dey for waterside, im see plenty motor turn upside down for road side, trees wey di flood uproot dey abandoned for road, houses wey dey flooded.

“Deadi bodi scata everywia – inside sea. Inside valley, under buildings,” Chkiouat tell tori pipo Reuters for phone.

Chkiouat tell tori pipo Al Jazeera say dem dey expect di number of deadi bodi to pass 2,500, as number of pipo wey dey miss dey increase.

“We fit to confam from our independent sources of information say di number of pipo wey dey miss don hit 10,000 so far,” Tamer Ramadan, head of delegate of di International Federation of di Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), tell tori pipo for Geneva through video link from Tunisia.

Libya don dey face political palava since dem overthrow and kill dia leader Col Muammar Gaddafi for 2011 – since den, di oil-rich kontri don scata into two wit one interim goment wey di international community recognise, wey dey operate for di capital Tripoli, and anoda one for di east.

According to Libya journalist Abdulkader Assad, dis dey affect rescue efforts as di different authorities no fit respond wit di kain sharp sharp move wey necessary to natural disaster.

"Dem no get rescue teams, Libya no get trained rescuers. Everytin since di last 12 years na about war," E tell BBC.

"Two goments na im dey Libya... and dis dey actually make help wey dey inter di kontri slow becos di whole tin dey confusing one kain. You get pipo wey dey promise to help but di help no dey come."

Chkiouat say help dey road and di goment from di east go accept help from di goment for Tripoli, wey don send one plane wit 14 tonnes of medical supplies, bags wia dem go put di deadi bodi dem and more dan 80 doctors and paramedics.

US special envoy to Libya, Richard Norton, say Washington go send help go eastern Libya in collabo wit UN partners and west Libya authorities.

Egypt, Germany, Iran, Italy, Qatar and Turkey dey among di kontris wey say dem ready to send or dem don already send help.

Derna, about 250km east of Benghazi along di waterside, dey surrounded by nearby hills of di fertile Jabal Akhdar region.

Di city na wia militants from di Islamic State group bin occupy one time afta di fall of Gaddafi.

Libyan National Army (LNA) forces wey loyal to Khalifar Haftar, wey be friends wit di eastern administration, bin drive dem comot some years later.

Di powerful general say di eastern officials dey currently assess damage wey di flood cause so dem go fit to reconstruct road plus reconnect electricity to help di rescue efforts.

"Make all official bodies, especially Libya central bank, provide di urgent financial support wey dem need so pipo wey need to work go begin reconstruction," na so Reuters quote am say im tok for one TV address.