Torrential rain swept across the Gaza Strip yesterday, flooding hundreds of tents sheltering families displaced by two years of war, and leading to the death of a baby girl due to exposure, local health officials said.
Medics said eight-month-old Rahaf Abu Jazar died of exposure to cold after water inundated her family’s tent in Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave.
Municipal and civil defence officials said they were unable to cope with the storm because of fuel shortages and damage to equipment.
They said Israel destroyed hundreds of vehicles, including bulldozers and others used to pump water, during the war, which displaced most of the over two million population and left much of Gaza in ruins.
The civil defence service said most of the tent encampments across the enclave were flooded, and it received more than 2,500 calls for help.
Some of the belongings of displaced people were seen floating on top of pools of rainwater that filled the alleys of the tent encampments.
A UN report said 761 displacement sites hosting about 850,000 people are at high risk of flooding and thousands of people had moved in anticipation of heavy rain.
UN and Palestinian officials said at least 300,000 new tents are urgently needed for the roughly 1.5m people still displaced.
Most existing shelters are worn out or made of thin plastic and cloth sheeting.
Gazans have resorted to ripping out iron rods from the debris of bombed houses and using them to prop up tents or to sell for a few dollars.
A ceasefire has broadly held since October, but the war destroyed much of Gaza’s infrastructure, leaving grim living conditions.
Hamas-led authorities say Israel is not allowing in as much aid as promised under the truce.
Aid agencies say Israel is blocking essential items.
Israel says it is meeting its obligations and accuses agencies of inefficiency and failing to prevent theft by Hamas, which the group denies.
“We hold the Israeli occupation fully responsible for exposing displaced families to climate hazards as it continues closing crossings and preventing the entry of relief items and shelter materials,” said Ismail Al Thawabta, head of the Hamas-run Gaza government media office.
The UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said flooded streets and soaked tents are worsening already dire conditions.
In Gaza City, three houses collapsed as a result of the rainstorm in areas that had been devastated by Israeli bombardment, the civil emergency service said.
&uuid=(email))