Crash claims the lives of rescuers who were sent to Libya

According to Libya’s health minister, a road accident on Sunday claimed the lives of four Greek rescuers who had been sent to the country after disastrous flooding in the city of Derna.

According to the Red Crescent assistance organisation, some 11,300 people perished when two dams gave way during last week’s Mediterranean storm Daniel, which caused a wall of water to slam into the city. 10,000 more people remain unaccounted for and are believed to be dead.

Helpers have poured to the devastated port city from Greece, Turkey, Egypt, and other nations.

At a news conference on Sunday, health minister Othman Abduljaleel said that a bus carrying 19 Greek rescuers and a car carrying five Libyans had crashed on the road between Benghazi and Derna. Additionally murdered were three Libyans riding in the approaching car.

The minister reported that seven of the Greek rescuers who were still alive were in critical condition.

In a separate statement, the Greek Foreign Ministry recognised the collision but claimed that only three of its citizens had perished, leaving two more people missing. The contradicting accounts were difficult for The Associated Press to reconcile right away.

The catastrophe has brought a rare sense of togetherness to the oil-rich nation of Libya, which had previously been split between rival governments in its east and west, each of which was supported by different armed groups and foreign backers. In the meantime, volunteers have assisted in the search for survivors buried beneath the rubble in the nearby cities of Benghazi and Tobruk. Residents from these cities have offered to house the displaced.

However, it has been difficult for the rival governments to address the situation. Their efforts to recover have been hampered by confusion, the difficulties of sending relief to the worst-affected areas, and the devastation of Derna’s infrastructure, including numerous bridges.

As of Sunday, more than 3,283 remains have been laid to rest, according to Abduljaleel. Many of the burials took place outside of Derna in mass graves, while others were moved to adjacent towns and cities.