(Bloomberg) -- Libya’s rival governments have come together to provide aid for residents in the OPEC nation’s southeast region after record rainfall devastated the area, sparking fears of flooding similar to what killed and displaced thousands last year.
Health authorities declared a state of emergency, placing ambulances and emergency services on alert. Flooding from days of rainfall uprooted trees and electricity poles and displaced nearly 3,000 people in the al-Kufra and Rabiana municipalities, according to the United Nations’ Relief Web.
The natural disaster prompted responses from both the internationally-recognized government based in Tripoli and its rival in the east, where military commander Khalifa Haftar ordered an airlift operation to deliver humanitarian and medical aid.
The collaboration was a rare show of unity in a North African nation where more than a decade of disputes and power struggles have paralyzed development efforts and shattered hopes for stability.
Al-Kufra, a predominantly desert area that’s now home to Sudanese fleeing the civil war in their country, saw an unprecedented 51 millimeters of rainfall within a 24-hour period, according to Libya’s meteorological authority. Families took refuge in schools due to damages incurred to their homes and 700 refugee families from Sudan are “out in the open,” Libya’s Al-Ahrar news outlet reported, citing the city’s mayor.
Officials are concerned about a possible repeat of last September’s flooding, which left thousands dead after two large dams collapsed when tropical storm Daniel battered the eastern city of Derna.
Read Also: War and Aging Dams Left Libya Exposed to a Climate Superstorm
After months of recriminations and accusations that authorities mishandled the crisis, a Libyan court jailed 12 people involved in managing dams in the country’s east.
Libya, which sits atop Africa’s largest proven reserves of crude oil, has been mired in turmoil since the overthrow and killing of leader Moammar Al Qaddafi in 2011. Repeated efforts spearheaded by the UN and others to unify the nation have failed.
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