Storm Floods 70,000 Tents in Gaza and Leaves Tens of Thousands Without Shelter

Heavy rain from the first winter storm of the season flooded about 70,000 tents sheltering displaced Palestinians across the Gaza Strip within about 12 hours on Saturday, Nov. 7, according to the Gaza Government Media Office. The rain and strong winds began late on Friday, Nov. 6, and left tens of thousands of people without shelter and left thousands of families exposed to cold and worsening conditions. The Government Media Office put initial losses and total damage at about 3 million US dollars and said the rain brought down dozens of walls. No deaths had been reported.

More than 1,500 calls for help

Gaza Civil Defence received at least 1,500 emergency calls from displaced residents whose shelters had flooded. Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for Palestinian Civil Defence, told AFP that his teams had responded to over 1,500 calls overnight from residents seeking urgent aid, and said the agency is operating without equipment or capabilities. "We cannot face the consequences of this storm on our own," Basal said. Water levels in several camps rose by 300 to 400 millimetres, 12 to 16 inches, and families fled camps in Gaza City, northern areas and central Gaza. Gaza City received 60 millimetres of rain in 12 hours, about 15 percent of its annual rainfall, Gaza Municipality spokesman Hosni Muhanna said. He warned 270 camps and shelter sites in Gaza City were at risk of flooding, and said war damage has cut drainage capacity in the city to 20 percent.

Bedding soaked, food aid missed

Al Jazeera correspondents in Gaza City and Deir el-Balah documented soaked mattresses, pillows and clothes. "The latest storm exposed just how fragile the protection is. In just a few hours, heavy rains and strong winds tore through shelters families had spent days trying to reinforce," said Ibrahim al-Khalili, an Al Jazeera correspondent reporting from Gaza City. Abdullah al-Majdalawi, director of public relations for Gaza Civil Defense, said: "We go to people and find an entire camp flooded, with its tents, people, furniture and bedding. We stand helpless before this tragic and difficult reality in Gaza." Medical sources said five Palestinians were injured when two walls of buildings damaged by earlier Israeli strikes collapsed and a sheet of corrugated metal fell during the storm. Displaced families in central Gaza whose shelters were flooded had not received food aid since early Saturday, Al Jazeera reporting from Deir el-Balah said.

Hundreds of thousands already in flood prone areas

Aid agencies had already placed this population in areas at risk of flooding. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs noted that about 950,000 displaced people in Gaza live in areas vulnerable to flooding, and Al Jazeera put nearly 400,000 displaced Palestinians in locations highly vulnerable to more flooding. Gaza Civil Defence said more than 2,000 buildings are at risk of collapse and at least 300,000 tents are needed for adequate shelter. UNRWA said on Thursday that 1.98 million people, about 94 percent of the Gaza population, needed shelter and other essential supplies, citing June surveys, and that 58 percent faced critical or catastrophic shelter needs. Jonathan Veitch, a UNICEF special representative, called conditions terrible and called for more funding.