70,000 tents flooded as heavy rains worsen suffering of displaced Palestinians in Gaza

Heavy rainfall across the Gaza Strip has flooded at least 70,000 tents sheltering displaced Palestinians within just 12 hours, leaving thousands of families struggling to cope with the first major winter storm of the season.

The flooding began on Saturday as torrential rain swept across the territory, inundating displacement camps, damaging makeshift shelters and soaking mattresses, blankets and clothing. The figure was reported by Gaza’s Government Media Office.

Gaza’s Civil Defence said its emergency teams received more than 2,000 distress calls following the storm, but were unable to respond to most of them due to severe shortages of equipment and resources.

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Civil Defence received 2,166 emergency calls by November 7, but rescue teams were able to respond to only 218. Water levels reached as high as 1.5 metres in some locations.

The UN agency reported on Sunday that more than 26,000 households had appealed for assistance after their shelters or belongings were damaged. An estimated 6,000 family shelters were destroyed, while another 17,400 sustained damage. Around 600 households were also forced to leave their shelters again because of the flooding.

The storm also caused damage to humanitarian facilities, health clinics and sanitation infrastructure, while flooding disrupted access to essential services in several parts of the territory.

The emergency response has been further hampered by the destruction of infrastructure and shortages of fuel, functioning water pumps, spare parts and heavy machinery.

Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defence, said the service lacked the capacity and equipment needed to deal with the scale of the emergency. He said Israeli forces had destroyed water-pumping equipment used by rescue teams and continued to prevent the entry of essential supplies, including engine oil, batteries, tyres and spare parts for emergency vehicles.

Oxfam’s response lead in Gaza, Wassem Mushtaha, said severe flooding had displaced around 100,000 people, while restrictions on access to shelter materials and large parts of the territory had left families with few safe places to go.

The humanitarian situation is particularly concerning as winter approaches, with much of Gaza’s population still living in temporary shelters following the destruction of residential areas during Israel’s war on the territory.

OCHA estimates that around 1.4 million Palestinians, representing approximately 65 per cent of Gaza’s population, are living in tents or makeshift shelters. Many of these structures are worn out and provide little protection against heavy rain and strong winds.

The UN agency said humanitarian stocks of tents, tarpaulins, blankets and clothing inside Gaza were virtually exhausted. Meanwhile, more than 150,000 tents purchased by humanitarian organisations and countries remain outside the territory, ready to be delivered.

Humanitarian agencies have called for urgent approval to bring in additional shelter supplies, mobile water pumps, vacuum trucks, fuel, engine oil, hoses and heavy machinery to help remove floodwater and repair damaged infrastructure.

The flooding has also been accompanied by deadly incidents. An infant reportedly drowned during the heavy rains, while several Palestinians, including children, were killed after a sand embankment collapsed onto tents sheltering displaced families in central Gaza.

The first major winter storm has highlighted the dangers facing hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians who remain without adequate housing as another winter begins.