Heavy rain and strong winds flooded tents sheltering displaced Palestinians across the Gaza Strip this weekend, Al Jazeera and France 24 reported. Residents said overflowing sewage had mixed with the floodwater, France 24 reported.
Reported damage
The rain flooded 70,000 tents and brought down dozens of walls since late Friday, Gaza’s Government Media Office said, according to Al Jazeera. The office estimated the damage at $3 million. Unverified claim, Gaza Government Media Office (Hamas-run).
Gaza’s Civil Defence reported at least 1,500 emergency calls and said more than 2,000 buildings were at risk of collapse and at least 300,000 tents were needed, Al Jazeera reported. Unverified claim, Gaza Civil Defence (Hamas-run).
Nearly 400,000 displaced Palestinians are sheltering in locations considered “highly vulnerable” to more flooding, Al Jazeera correspondent Ibrahim al-Khalili reported from Gaza City.
What aid groups said
Ahmad Alhendawi, regional director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe at Save the Children International, called the situation “heartbreaking” and “entirely foreseeable,” Al Jazeera reported. “This is a choice, and children are paying the price,” he said.
Jonathan Veitch, UNICEF’s special representative in Palestine, said most people are living in “terrible conditions” and called for more funding, Al Jazeera reported.
On the ground
Families built earthen barriers and tried to drain the water by hand, France 24 reported. Displaced families in Deir el-Balah had not received food aid since early Saturday, Al Jazeera correspondent Ashraf Abu Amra reported. More coverage is in The Boston Report’s World News section.
Sources
- Al Jazeera: Floods in Gaza leave tens of thousands without shelter
- France 24: Gaza: Heavy rain inundates thousands of tents
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