ArrowRight Authorities in the east declared Derna a disaster zone Monday after floodwaters burst through its two aging dams, inundating wide swaths of the city and leaving muddy, churning river in their wake. “Derna is a tragedy, a catastrophe,” said Asmahan Belaoun, a Libyan lawmaker with family in the city. Unverified videos posted on social media and aired on Libyan news networks showed apocalyptic scenes of a city submerged. About 170 millimeters of rain — 2.75 inches — fell in Al Abraq in the Derna District. But officials also said that the storm lost most of its energy over the arid terrain of Libya so its intensity was easing.

Source: Libya Today September 11, 2023 18:59 UTC