Atiya Alhasadi

A year has passed, but time seems to have stopped that night; my mind refuses to accept what happened, and my heart is still broken because of it.

I am Atiya Alhasadi, Chairman of the Roaya Foundation.

On a day like this, my colleagues and I at the Roeya Foundation weather department were on high alert and monitoring the imminent danger that became clear. We urged the authorities and warned the people, but they were completely oblivious! I felt helpless when people decided to stay in the danger zone, trusting the authorities that reassured them that everything was under control.

Within hours, the storm’s features became more apparent. I went on TV, stressing that we were heading towards an unbearable catastrophe. That was the last message from Derna to the outside world before we were completely isolated.

Darkness fell, communication was cut off, and before I could blink, the waters had surged in a scene that words cannot describe! There was no sound to be heard except the crashing of waves; I rushed to the roof to find several family members who had beaten me there. The water continued to rise until we climbed over a water tank, our last refuge after God Almighty!

The darkness had lifted by dawn, I wish it hadn't. As I looked around I recognized nothing! Buildings were stripped away and swallowed by the sea, along with everyone inside. People disoriented. There was my father, who lost his sisters, and his friends with whom he drank his evening coffee, his friends that he chatted with after evening prayers, and there was my friend who told me that he was the lone survivor of his family, and I, stumbled amid the rubble, searching for walls that once held memories which I thought would remain forever!

What happened in the devastated eastern cities is just a glimpse of the disasters related to climate change. It could have been avoided if there had been proper emergency systems and a responsible government. I hope that this will now be achieved after the heavy price paid by the innocent.