Edmonton Libyan community fundraising to help those affected by deadly flood back home
Libyan Edmontonians are working to get supplies to family and friends who have been affected by flooding in the eastern part of their home country.
Heavy rains from the Mediterranean storm Daniel caused the collapse of two dams on Monday, sending water several metres high gushing through the port city Derna.
Authorities say 11,000 have already been declared dead and believe another 10,000 missing people were killed, too.
"We have people that are from here in Edmonton that got news that their siblings and their whole families were passed away," Libyan Edmontonian Mabrouka Swenia told CTV News Edmonton on Thursday.
"Whole family trees just wiped out."
Libyan Edmontonian Mabrouka Swenia speaks to CTV News Edmonton on Sept. 14, 2023, about her restaurant, The Bedouins, donating 15 per cent of its sales to Libya flooding relief.
Her parents were born and raised in Libya and eventually immigrated to Canada. Her husband's family is from the flooded region and his parents, siblings and their families remain there.
"It was quite a harrowing experience having to call family and make sure everyone was safe there," Swenia said.
In Edmonton, Swenia runs The Bedouins, a restaurant in northwest Edmonton serving Arabian and North African cuisine.
Fifteen per cent of the business' sales between Sept. 14 and 17 will be donated to Libya relief aid initiatives.
"If I could buy diapers, formula, medication, for what is needed right now – that's great," she said.
Swenia told CTV News Edmonton she is "very close" to Libya.
"We visit quite often. When my kids ask me where we're from: you're Canadian Libyans," she said.
"Libya, we're a strong people, we're a resilient people. But that does not mean we don't need support. What's happened to them is the first time it's ever happened in modern history of Libya and it happened to them in the middle of the night while they were sleeping."
A man walks by the graves of the flash flood victims in Derna, Libya, Friday, Sept. 15, 2023. The death toll in Libya's coastal city of Derna has soared to over ten thousand as search efforts continue following a massive flood fed by the breaching of two dams in heavy rains, the Libyan Red Crescent said Thursday. (AP Photo/Yousef Murad)
- How Libya's chaos left its people vulnerable to deadly flooding
- Whole families drowned in Libya's flood. Many didn't realize the danger until they heard dams burst
She also called on the Canadian government to help in any way it can, noting Libya's civil conflict has hampered its ability to help citizens.
"This is a call directly to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Why not Libya? This is something that they need."
Officials say the death toll could climb higher because of extra danger in the water: firstly, disease and contamination; secondly, undetected landmines and other explosive remnants that may have been shifted by the flooding.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Brandon Lynch
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Board orders deportation for trucker in horrific Humboldt Broncos crash
The truck driver who caused the horrific bus crash involving the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team has been ordered to be deported.
How to keep insects out of your house, according to an entomologist and other experts
Now that temperatures have warmed up even more this spring, you may be anxious at the thought of bugs invading your home or you may already be battling the pests. Here are expert tips on how to keep them away.
Community mourns victims of fatal boat crash near Kingston, Ont.
The three people killed in last weekend's tragic collision between a speedboat and a fishing boat north of Kingston are being remembered Friday.
A woman took her dog to a shelter to be euthanized. A year later, the dog is up for adoption again
Exhausted and short on options after consulting two veterinary clinics, Kristie Pereira made the gut-wrenching decision last year to take her desperately ill puppy to a Maryland shelter to be euthanized.
Group tied to Islamic State plotted fatal Ontario restaurant shooting: Crown
A gunman who is accused of killing a young Ontario man and shooting four of his family members at their small Mississauga restaurant in 2021 was allegedly part of a trio who had pledged allegiance to the listed terrorist group Islamic State, a Crown attorney said in an opening statement in the Brampton murder trial this week.
Leaving time on the table: Surveys show unused paid vacation, 'quiet vacationing'
'Quiet vacationing' is the latest new term to describe the rough edges of office culture, and survey data shows it's widespread among North American workers.
Avian flu: Catch up on spread, risks, and guidance from health experts
After another case of H5N1 avian flu linked to dairy cows was confirmed in a second dairy farmer in the United States, some Canadian experts say the federal government needs to expand surveillance of the virus north of the border.
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
UN court order demanding Israel to halt Gaza offensive further isolates U.S. position
A ruling by the top United Nations court ordering Israel to halt its military offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah has deepened its disconnect with the United States over an operation that faces mounting international condemnation but that American officials describe, at least for now, as limited and targeted.