A European Commission said the aid was "on the way" to the devastated city of Derna and the bloc had formally activated its civil protection mechanism to mobilise help.

The move followed a formal request for assistance from authorities in Libya on Tuesday.

The aid from the three EU member states consists of "tents, field beds and blankets, 80 generators, food items, as well as hospital tents and water tanks", the EU said.

EU crisis management commission Janez Lenarcic said the bloc had also released an initial 500,000 euros ($535,000) in emergency funding.

"The EU remains ready to scale up the response for the most affected people in Libya going through this difficult time," he said.