– The flood in Libya is a disaster where climate and capacity have collided, says UN emergency aid chief Martin Griffiths. – With better coordination, they could send out alerts and emergency services and thus evacuate the people. Most of the deaths could have been avoided, says Petteri Taalas, the head of the World Meteorological Organization. With 11,000 people confirmed dead so far, the flood in Libya is the deadliest extreme weather event in the world in 2023. In the city of Derna, up to a fifth of the population is feared dead. A dead person is moved from the flooded areas. Photo: IHH / AP But the weather is not the only reason why the flood in Libya was so deadly. Two dams that had not been maintained since 2003 burst after the rain, confirming warnings we have heard before: – Climate change, underdevelopment and inequality exacerbate each other. The UN’s climate panel warned about this, among other things, in its report from 2022. It is in the countries where the economy, infrastructure and governance are the worst that climate change is felt the worst. Climate change and the storm Daniel It takes time to investigate whether the storm would have occurred or become as intense without climate change. But several researchers already believe that this is the case. – There has not yet been a formal study done to link climate change with storm Daniel. But it is clear that the temperatures on the sea surface have been far above average throughout the summer, says climate researcher Karsten Haustein at the University of Leipzig to The Guardian. A severe heat wave has weighed on the Mediterranean this summer. It became far worse than expected due to climate change, researchers have previously stated. Haustein says the same heat wave is the reason why large rain showers gathered for storm Daniel. According to the think tank Carnegie, Libya is the country in the world where climate change leads to the fastest rise in temperature. Already by 2050, an increase of two degrees is expected. Photo: ESAM OMRAN AL-FETORI / Reuters – The warmer weather drives the rain showers forward, and makes the storms more intense, Haustein elaborates. Bill Hare, head of the analysis company Climate Analytics, concludes the same. – This would not have happened without the extreme rainy weather caused by global warming, he tells the AP news agency. On average, 330 millimeters of rain falls a year in Derna. September tends to be a dry month, with 5 millimeters of rainfall on average. During storm Daniel, up to 400 millimeters fell over the region in one day. Tvinnereim: – Linked to the major climate changes Norway’s development minister was able to announce yesterday that Norway is giving NOK 25 million to the ongoing rescue work. She has no doubts about what will be important in the future. GIVES MONEY: Development Minister Anne Beathe Tvinnereim says Norway is now giving 25 million in money for life-saving efforts, a roof over their heads, medicines and water in Libya. Photo: news – This is linked to the major climate changes. In the long term, we must together help build climate adaptation and prevent climate crises in the vulnerable countries, says Anne Beathe Tvinnereim (Sp) to news. – Climate change is already causing damage in such vulnerable countries. We know that they do not have the preparedness or the infrastructure to withstand such shocks, says Tvinnereim. The source of life that destroyed The consequences are worst in the Mediterranean city of Derna. Up to 20,000 people may have lost their lives there, says mayor Abdulmenam Al-Ghaiti. As the rain poured down, seven meter high waves crashed over land. The infrastructure was ailing even before the water masses arrived. The civil war, which has been raging since 2011, has left its mark on the country. Daniel was the final straw. Two dams collapsed from the weight of the water. They had not been maintained since 2003. The river Wadi Derna, which for years had been held in check by the concrete masses, could now flow unhindered down through the mountain valley. Below the almost thousand meter high mountains lies the town of Derna. On a strip of plains and beaches one finds one of the few arable places in Libya. The area has been inhabited since ancient times. But the water that usually makes the city habitable, this Monday 11 September became a doomsday force. 30 million cubic meters of water destroyed the dense buildings along the river. The town of Derna has been destroyed by 30 million cubic meters of water. Photo: AYMAN AL-SAHILI / Reuters Blocks of flats were smashed while the families in them slept. Major Vulnerabilities – There are bodies everywhere. Inside the houses, in the streets and on the lake. Everywhere you go there are dead men, women and children, Emad al-Falah told the AP news agency. The rescue work is an uphill battle. Only three roads lead into Derna, and they are all partially flooded or destroyed. In addition, the mobile network is poor. The civil war in Libya Libya has been characterized by war and conflict since the uprising in 2011. The uprising triggered a civil war that led to the overthrow of the country’s dictator, Muammar al-Gaddafi. The UN Security Council approved an international military intervention in Libya to protect civilians. Norway was involved, and the operation contributed to the fall of the Gaddafi regime. The war led to chaos, lawlessness and ongoing conflict in Libya. It has included the rise of human trafficking, several armed militia groups and Islamist extremism. In October 2020, a ceasefire was signed in Libya, and an interim coalition government has ruled the country since then. But peace is fragile, and plans for democratic elections have been pushed further and further away. Libya also has other climate-related challenges on the horizon. The Carnegie think tank warns of an acute risk of a lack of drinking water. Under dictator Muammar Ghaddafi’s rule, wells were built into underground freshwater sources, which have since been drained to contribute to Libyan agriculture. The remaining water evaporates faster. Carnegie also warns that Libya’s economy, which is mainly based on oil exports, could be very vulnerable if oil prices fall. The inefficient oil extraction also contributes to Libya having among the highest per capita greenhouse gas emissions in the world. The country’s oil revenues have contributed to a bloated public sector, which employs around 85 percent of the workforce in Libya. According to the US Department of State, only 4 percent of employees in the country of 7 million inhabitants work in the private sector.
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