TRANSCRIPT
Libyans have expressed anger at officials during a protest on Monday ((September 18)), held a week after the flood that swept the city centre of Derna into the sea.
Gathered outside the Sahaba Mosque, dozens chanted and clapped in unison.
There, a resident read out a list of demands following disastrous flooding in the coastal city which killed thousands.
The man has called on authorities to expedite their investigation into last week's disaster and for those in charge of city infrastructure to be arrested.
“We call for holding all officials accountable and arresting them, those (officials) who were in charge of the city although they were not qualified, those who were appointed despite being rejected by the city’s residents.”
There have also been calls for the United Nations to set up an office in Derna, for urgent reconstruction of the city and compensation for those affected by the flood.
Another protester named Mohammed Ben Hamad says Libyan companies should not be involved in the rebuilding process.
“First of all, we pray that all the martyrs will rest in peace, and I hope this is the end of our catastrophes. We just ask that if there will be any rebuilding efforts that no Libyan company be ever involved. This is because everyone in Derna - from the head of the municipality to all of the officials - are corrupt. Derna should be either be left as it is, or a foreign company should be involved. The souls of the martyrs will not be in vain.”
Two dams collapsed during Mediterranean storm Daniel, sending a wall of water gushing through the city on September 11.
Officials using different methodologies have given widely varying figures of the tolls so far; the mayor estimates more than 20,000 people were lost.
The World Health Organization has confirmed more than 3,900 deaths.
Families are still coping with the unbearable losses of their dead - and haunted by the unknown fates of the missing.
69-year-old Hassan Kassar cannot hold back his tears after losing four of his children in the floods.
"I found my son has passed away, and that the house fell on them, I did not expect that to happen from just a storm. I arrived here and people told me that on Sunday this and that happened and the water entered the house and my children were inside, their uncles kept asking them to come out, but they could not. The water started flowing inside from the windows, they (Kassar's children) tried to exit from the back, but the water went inside from there and forced them to rise to the ceiling and the four of them fainted."
Officials have warned that a disease outbreak could create a second crisis as diarrhea spread among those who drank contaminated water.
Unexploded munitions are also a threat, as many were dislodged during the floods after the two dams collapsed.
The U-N Humanitarian Coordinator for Libya Georgette Gagnon says the flood damage is beyond comprehension.
"Given the nature and scope of this tragedy, we're very concerned about the health impacts and the potential spread of waterborne diseases as water sources and sewer networks have been severely damaged. We're also concerned that floodwaters have shifted landmines and unexploded remnants of war, leaving displaced people at risk of injury and death."
Nine U-N agencies responding to the disaster are working to prevent diseases from taking hold and creating another crisis in the devastated country, which is receiving 28 tons (25 metric tons) of medical supplies from the World Health Organization.
Ms Gagnon says they are backed by international patrons and armed militias whose influence in the country has ballooned since a NATO-backed Arab Spring uprising toppled autocratic ruler Moammar Gadhafi in 2011.
"The international effort is well underway, the international aid effort. There are many countries who have stepped up and are providing different kinds of international support. Search and rescue teams from several countries have been on the ground for several days. There are ships and planes coming in to Libya to support the international aid efforts."
Meanwhile, humanitarian aid from the United Arab Emirates [[UAE]] arrived to a sorting facility in Libya's Karsa, to help victims of the flooding that hit Derna.
Ahmed Al-Hajeri from the Emirati Red Crescent says aid supplies, containing food and shelter materials, are being sorted by members of the Libyan Red Crescent, and will be distributed around the devastated city.
"We have distributed more than 1,800 food packages and today we will proceed with the distribution with the Libyan Red Crescent in Derna. Today, we are in Karsa, hopefully we will complete (the distribution) of UAE aid given from the Emirati people to our Libyan brothers."
It's a week since Derna Wadi, a dry riverbed most of the year, burst the dams built to hold it back when rains pour into the hills, and swept away much of the city below. As rescuers struggle in the flooded city, four Greek rescue workers and three Libyans have been killed on their way to start work.
