EU: floods and dam collapse, new humanitarian funding to Libya. Four Greek rescuers killed

The EU has allocated €5.2 million in humanitarian funding to Libya to meet its dramatic need for aid following the disaster that hit the country with Storm Daniel and the collapse of two dams in Derna last 11 September. “The funding – the European Commission said in a statement - will be channelled through EU humanitarian partners active in the country, enabling them to strengthen assistance with a focus on shelter; health; food; water, sanitation and hygiene; and protection”. Part of the funding (€200,000) will go to the Disaster Response Emergency Fund of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in support of the Libya Red Crescent Society. The Commission had already released €500,000 in the hours following the floods. The EU continues to provide assistance through its EU Civil Protection Mechanism, thanks to the cooperation of Germany, Romania, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, France, Belgium and Austria. The Emergency Response Coordination Centre has dispatched a team of experts and a liaison officer to support ground operations, Commissioner Janez Lenarčič announced, who also informed that several Greek rescue workers lost their lives in an accident yesterday, Sunday, 17 September, as they were engaged in providing help. According to press sources, four members of the Greek rescue team were killed, along with three Libyans, and 15 were injured.
Sarah Numico