(Photo by Olivier Matthys/Getty Images) Olivier Matthys/Getty ImagesĮnormous scale of destruction is revealed as water subsides after historic western Europe flooding The government of Belgium has declared July 20, a national day of mourning. According to local reports 27 are dead and 103 missing after 2 days of heavy rain caused rivers to burst and wash houses away. PEPINSTER, BELGIUM - JULY 17: A general view of the destruction following severe flooding after heavy rainfall on Jin Pepinster, Belgium. He said the experiences of the past week show there is often a gap between the weather warnings scientists issue and the actions actually taken by people in charge on the ground. “There was clearly a serious breakdown in communication, which in some cases has tragically cost people’s lives,” said Jeff Da Costa, a PhD researcher in hydrometeorology at the University of Reading in the United Kingdom.ĭa Costa focuses on flood warning systems in his research, and his own parents’ home in Luxembourg happened to be hit over the weekend. Now questions are being raised over whether the chain of communication from the central European level to regions is working. The Copernicus Emergency Management Service said it sent more than 25 warnings for specific regions of the Rhine and Maas river basins in the days leading up to the flooding, through its European Flood Awareness System (EFAS), well before heavy rains triggered the flash flooding.īut few of these early warnings appear to have been passed on to residents early – and clearly – enough, catching them completely off guard. After all, Europe has a world-leading warning system that issued regular alerts for days before floods engulfed entire villages.īut at least 195 people still died in Germany and Belgium, in floods that came quickly and forcefully. Libya also exports about 7 million cu m/d of gas to Europe.As communities devastated by the catastrophic flooding in parts of western Europe start picking up the pieces, they are wondering how it all went so wrong, so fast. Libya, which produces mostly light, sweet crude, exports the vast majority of its production, with some 85% going to Europe, as several of its domestic refineries are offline or at severely reduced capacity due to damage from fighting. The divided country's oil sector has been extremely volatile in recent years, due to factions vying for political and military control of its economy. The NOC had only a day earlier report that Libyan crude oil production had reached 1.208 million b/d with condensate output at 48,000 b/d. High-speed winds of 80-120 km/h and rain of as much as 50-250 mm carry risks of torrents and floods in some cities, it said. 9 and was expected to bring "severe effects" to Libya, according to a report by Middle East meteorological service Arab Weather.Ī storm with subtropical features in July/September in the Mediterranean is considered rare, and could bring heavy rain, strong winds and turbulent waves. Hurricane Daniel that had hit Greece and Turkey in the past few days was downgraded to a subtropical storm by Sept. Steps may include removing workers and equipment from sites. Ports and shipment movements should also be monitored, and steps taken if necessary to protect industrial units, production lines, storage units and facilities from floods, NOC said. A senior NOC official confirmed the port closings.Īll companies affiliated with NOC must reduce movement outside oil sites, restrict movement and stop flights between fields, the NOC said on X, the platform formerly called Twitter. Ras Lanuf, Zueitina, Brega and Es Sidra ports will be shut for at least three days, a source familiar with the matter said. Receive daily email alerts, subscriber notes & personalize your experience.
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