Heavy rain and wind flooded tents and shelters across Gaza over the weekend, and children were among the dead, according to the UN aid coordination office, known as OCHA. The office said in an update released Monday that an infant reportedly drowned and five other people were killed when a sand dune collapsed onto tents.
Local authorities said three children and two women died when the dune came down on tents at Al Berka Reservoir, which lies west of Deir Al Balah. One other person was hurt. OCHA said thousands of families lost their shelters and belongings after the rain began Friday night. It said the storm flooded displacement sites, collapsed damaged buildings and disrupted services in all five of Gaza’s governorates.
About 65% of Gaza’s population, or roughly 1.4 million people, live in tents or makeshift shelters, according to the source. UN Deputy Special Coordinator Ramiz Alakbarov, speaking from Ramallah, said rain cannot be prevented but more must be done to protect vulnerable people. He said most Gazans live in worn-out tents that cannot withstand what would be a moderate storm elsewhere.
By Sunday, humanitarian partners had received appeals for help from more than 26,000 households with damaged shelters or belongings, OCHA said. More than 6,000 family shelters were reportedly destroyed and 17,400 damaged. More than 3,900 households have no shelter at all.
So far, partners have evaluated the needs of 1,877 households and given help to 422 households across 29 displacement sites. Water reached 1.5 meters in some places. Civil defense units received 2,166 distress calls but could answer only 218.
At least 55 learning spaces serving about 55,000 children were flooded, OCHA said. Some health facilities were damaged, and some medical teams suspended services. Mine action partners warned that floodwaters could expose or move unexploded weapons.
The UN and its partners are pumping out water, improving drainage, placing sandbags, repairing shelters and delivering emergency supplies. Stocks of tents, tarpaulins, blankets and clothing inside Gaza are nearly used up, according to the source. Residents of one tent camp in Deir Al Balah said sewage overflowed into the camp with the floodwater and soaked their mattresses and clothing.
More than 150,000 tents bought by humanitarian partners and UN member states are outside Gaza, ready to be sent in, the source said. About 117,000 of them are with the Egyptian Relief Committee in Al-Arish. Alakbarov called for the urgent removal of all unnecessary restrictions and delays on items such as vacuum trucks, dewatering pumps, heavy machinery, tents, plastic sheeting, blankets and winter clothing.
UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq told Monday’s news briefing that Israeli efforts to help rebuilding in Gaza have been insufficient. “We certainly can be getting more in,” he said, adding that the UN needs permission from Israeli authorities to bring supplies through checkpoints. The source did not include a response from Israeli authorities.
Strikes continue to hit populated areas, the source said. On Saturday, UN staff who were visiting a displacement site in Gaza City sought shelter after gunfire erupted close by.