The death toll from catastrophic flooding in Libya could climb as high as 50,000, as rescuers have struggled to reach the devastated port city of Derna. (Photo: REUTERS)
The number of Palestinians who were killed in the rainstorm that struck eastern Libya has risen to 64, according to an official statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates.
The political advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Ambassador Ahmed Al Deek, said in a statement issued by the Ministry and published by WAFA news agency that it is following the conditions of the Palestinian community in areas affected by the hurricane in Libya to determine the number of victims and extent of damage inflicted by the floods.
Dozens of Palestinian families are, meanwhile, declared missing.
More than 15,000 people ended up dead or missing as a result of a single night of flooding that hit Eastern Libya a couple of weeks earlier, a stark demonstration of what happens when warming temperatures collide with aging infrastructure and chronic political instability.
The International Organization for Migration had previously said that over 100,000 migrants lived in flood-hit areas, including more than 8,000 in the city of Derna.