FLOODED AND DISPLACED. Heavy rains flood camps of displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Friday (Jan. 26, 2024). Officials said water standing in the tents, diseases are likely to spread. (Anadolu)
GAZA CITY, Palestine – Heavy rains in the Gaza Strip have exacerbated the suffering of hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians in tents and shelter centers.
The water flooded thousands of camps and submerged the residents’ belongings, leaving them without blankets and warm clothes.
Palestinian Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Basal said heavy rains had inundated many low-lying areas in Gaza.
“We received more than a thousand warnings about flooded tents and homes in various governorates of Gaza,” he added.
“What hinders the work of civil defense crew is the lack of the necessary amount of fuel to operate rainwater pumps and move rescue vehicles to flooded areas,” the spokesman said.
He feared that with water standing in the tents, diseases are likely to spread.
Hosni Muhanna, coordinator of the Union of Gaza Strip Municipalities, said rainwater mixed with sewage was overflowing the Sheikh Radwan and Abu Rashid ponds, north of Gaza City. (Anadolu)
