38,640 people displaced in Libya floods as water contamination, power outages disrupt daily life

A gap cutting the highway between Derna City and Sousse City in east Libya. The gap was originally linked with a bridge that was destroyed in recent heavy floods. [Xinhua]

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Friday that more than 38,640 people have been displaced in the most affected areas in northeastern Libya after heavy floods triggered by Mediterranean storm Daniel swept the region.

The IOM said in a statement that 2,217 buildings were destroyed alone in Derna, the port city that has been hit hardest by Libya's worst floods in decades.