TRIPOLI — Torrential rain on Tuesday flooded Libyan capital Tripoli, killing at least two people, authorities and local media reported.The Libyan Red Crescent deployed emergency teams as downpours flooded neighborhoods and damaged buildings and vehicles, while the national water and sewerage company said rainfall had overwhelmed the city’s drainage system.Jumhouria Bank said an employee died due to an electrical shock, and the Tripoli Red Crescent said in a statement it recovered the man’s body during the flooding.Rescue teams recovered the body of another man from his car, which was submerged in the floodwaters, according to a local TV station.Fadel Abu Arqoub, the mayor of Central Tripoli, said the rain lasted for 2-1/2 hours and that the situation was catastrophic.The state-owned electricity company said it cut off power as a precaution in certain areas where rising water reached homes. Eyewitnesses said the floodwaters inundated roads and submerged numerous vehicles, as residents faced flooded streets in the capital.Al Jazeera said heavy rainfall triggered severe flooding in Tripoli, submerging cars, trapping people inside buildings and inundating hospitals. Al Jazeera also described videos showing residents pleading for help and a security officer reportedly carrying a man with disabilities to safety.The Government of National Unity (GNU) ordered relevant authorities to raise their state of readiness and respond urgently to rainwater accumulation in Tripoli amid rainfall across the city on Tuesday.The National Safety Authority, the General Company for Water and Wastewater, Tripoli Public Services Company, the Emergency Medicine and Support Centre, the Ambulance and Emergency Service and the Air Ambulance Service mobilized their resources, including machinery, technical teams and emergency and rescue crews.Tripoli’s Souq al-Jumaa municipality declared itself a disaster area and appealed for urgent government assistance.Authorities also cut power to several affected areas as a precaution, while the University of Tripoli postponed examinations through Thursday.TRIPOLI — Torrential rain on Tuesday flooded Libyan capital Tripoli, killing at least two people, authorities and local media reported.The Libyan Red Crescent deployed emergency teams as downpours flooded neighborhoods and damaged buildings and vehicles, while the national water and sewerage company said rainfall had overwhelmed the city’s drainage system.Jumhouria Bank said an employee died due to an electrical shock, and the Tripoli Red Crescent said in a statement it recovered the man’s body during the flooding.Rescue teams recovered the body of another man from his car, which was submerged in the floodwaters, according to a local TV station.Fadel Abu Arqoub, the mayor of Central Tripoli, said the rain lasted for 2-1/2 hours and that the situation was catastrophic.The state-owned electricity company said it cut off power as a precaution in certain areas where rising water reached homes. Eyewitnesses said the floodwaters inundated roads and submerged numerous vehicles, as residents faced flooded streets in the capital.Al Jazeera said heavy rainfall triggered severe flooding in Tripoli, submerging cars, trapping people inside buildings and inundating hospitals. Al Jazeera also described videos showing residents pleading for help and a security officer reportedly carrying a man with disabilities to safety.The Government of National Unity (GNU) ordered relevant authorities to raise their state of readiness and respond urgently to rainwater accumulation in Tripoli amid rainfall across the city on Tuesday.The National Safety Authority, the General Company for Water and Wastewater, Tripoli Public Services Company, the Emergency Medicine and Support Centre, the Ambulance and Emergency Service and the Air Ambulance Service mobilized their resources, including machinery, technical teams and emergency and rescue crews.Tripoli’s Souq al-Jumaa municipality declared itself a disaster area and appealed for urgent government assistance.Authorities also cut power to several affected areas as a precaution, while the University of Tripoli postponed examinations through Thursday.
Two die as torrential rains flood Libya's capital Tripoli
