Libya Floods Emergency Six-Month Impact Report (September 2023 - March 2024)

UNHCR
May 06, 2024

Libya Floods Emergency Six-Month Impact Report (September 2023 - March 2024)


On 11 September 2023, Storm Daniel – the deadliest Mediterranean tropical-like cyclone or ‘medicane’ in recorded history – hit eastern Libya, causing extreme weather conditions including strong winds and sudden heavy rainfall in several areas along the coast. The storm caused two dams to burst and consequently massive floods inflicting significant casualties and destruction throughout several cities and towns in the northeastern and the Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar (Green Mountain) region of Libya. Areas that were particularly hard-hit include Derna as well as Al Bayada, Soussa, Al Marj, Shahat, Taknis, Battah, Tolmeita, Bersis, Tokra, and Al-Abyar, among others. The death toll surpassed 4,000 people, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health, and the floods caused mass displacement of an estimated 44,000 people, with 30,000 in Derna alone, while an estimated 250,000 people were affected**. Refugees and internally displaced people already living in the area were once again displaced. Roughly 3,000 refugees were registered with UNHCR in eastern Libya at the time of the storm, out of which 206 were directly impacted by the storm. Eastern Libya also hosted 46,000 internally displaced people prior to the storms**. Following the devastating floods, Benghazi city has been hosting thousands of families who have lost everything – their homes, their belongings, their livelihoods and, worst of all, their loved ones.UNHCR has been present in Benghazi since 2014 and works with the Government of Libya, national and international organizations to provide humanitarian aid and durable solutions to refugees, displaced people and asylum-seekers in Libya.