The World Health Organization and other relief organizations called on the authorities in Libya to stop burying flood victims in mass graves, saying this may cause long-term psychological problems for families or may create health risks if the bodies are buried near water..
A United Nations report stated that more than a thousand people have been buried in this way so far since Libya was exposed to heavy rains on Sunday that led to the collapse of two dams..
Thousands died and thousands more are still missing due to the disaster.
Disastrous effects
- “Bodies are scattered in the streets, washed back onto the beach, or buried under collapsed buildings and rubble,” Bilal Sablouh, forensic director for the Africa region at the International Committee of the Red Cross, told a news briefing in Geneva. “In just two hours, one of my colleagues counted more than 200 bodies on the beach near From tuber“.
- Ibrahim Al-Arabi, Minister of Health in the Libyan government based in Tripoli in the west of the country, told Reuters that he was certain that the groundwater was contaminated by water mixed with human corpses, dead animals, garbage and chemicals. He urged residents not to approach well water in Derna.
- Muhammad Al Qubaisi, head of Al Wahda Hospital in Derna, said that there is a field hospital that treats those suffering from chronic diseases that require regular care. He added that there are fears of the spread of water-borne diseases, but no cases of cholera have been recorded so far.
- The International Organization for Migration’s mission in Libya said on Friday that more than five thousand were dead, with 3,922 deaths recorded in hospitals, and more than 38,640 were displaced in the northeastern region hit by floods.. Officials said the death toll could be much higher.
The torrents and floods destroyed large areas of the city of Derna in eastern Libya when they swept through a river course that is usually devoid of water, led to the collapse of two dams and toppled entire buildings while families were sleeping..
Nouri Muhammad (60 years old) said while he was standing in a bakery offering free loaves of bread to help the people of Derna, “We must be afraid of an epidemic… There are still buried bodies… And now the smells are starting to emerge from the bodies.”“.
WHO statement
- The United Nations World Health Organization, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have jointly called for improved burial procedures..
- “We urge authorities in areas affected by the tragedy not to rush into mass burials or mass cremations,” Kazunobu Kojima, medical officer for biosafety and biosecurity at the WHO Health Emergencies Programme, said in the joint statement.“.
- The statement called for improving the management of burial operations to be in specific, well-documented individual cemeteries, saying that hasty burials could lead to long-term psychological problems for the families of the victims, in addition to social and legal problems..
- The statement added that the bodies of victims of natural disasters “almost never” pose any health threat, and that the exception is the presence of bodies at or near fresh water sources due to the possibility of waste seeping into them..
Dealing with the dead
A doctor in Derna said this week that unidentified bodies had been photographed before being buried on the basis that relatives might be able to identify them later..
A United Nations report said Thursday that more than a thousand bodies in Derna and more than 100 bodies in Al Bayda, another coastal city ravaged by floods, were buried in mass graves..
On Friday, the International Committee of the Red Cross sent a cargo plane to Benghazi, the largest city in eastern Libya, carrying five thousand body bags. Other aid also comes from abroad.
The Norwegian Refugee Council, which has a 100-strong team in Libya, said the handling of bodies was the most pressing concern..
“I heard from my team that there are mass graves where rescue workers say: ‘Don’t bring us food, don’t bring us water, bring us body bags,’” said Ahmed Bayram of the Norwegian Refugee Council.“.
The Danish Refugee Council said that it would send a team specialized in eliminating mines, fearing that landmines would be moved from their positions due to the floods..
Saad Rajab Muhammad (50 years old), a security personnel who lives in the town of Sousse, which is about 60 kilometers away and was also affected by the floods, said, “The state is not helping us… and now I am in the street with my children and my wife.”“.
Martin Griffiths, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said at a press conference in Geneva that Libya needs equipment to find people trapped in the mud and damaged buildings after torrents and floods, and also needs primary health care to prevent the spread of cholera among survivors. .
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