Gaza faces humanitarian disaster with thousands trapped in flooded camps
Heavy rains are flooding Gaza displacement camps, killing a baby and forcing thousands to move. Officials warn of an imminent humanitarian disaster amid severe shelter and aid shortages.
More than 250,000 families living in displacement camps across Gaza are facing worsening conditions as heavy rains and cold weather continue to batter the enclave.
According to Gaza Civil Defence officials, many of the affected families are sheltering in worn-out tents that cannot withstand flooding. On Wednesday, authorities reported that water levels in some tents exceeded 40 centimetres, forcing families to seek higher ground.
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The heavy rains persisted into Thursday, making life even harder for people in Gaza’s displacement camps. Rescue teams reported that a baby girl died after her family became trapped in a flooded tent.
Civil Defence spokesperson Mahmoud Basal has warned of an "imminent humanitarian disaster," noting that the territory’s 2.4 million residents continue to face severe shortages of aid and basic shelter.
Downpours to intensify
The civil defence service predicts that the downpours will intensify on Thursday afternoon and continue into Friday morning, heightening the risk of widespread flooding.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has identified 761 displacement sites, home to around 850,000 people, as "at highest risk" of floods. More than 3,500 movements of displaced families were recorded earlier this week as residents sought safer areas.
Reports indicate that aid agencies are scrambling to relocate families from shoreline sites and reinforce shelters with sandbags and other protective measures, though resources remain limited.
According to Jonathan Crickx, UNICEF Palestine’s communication chief, children are bearing the heaviest burden of the crisis, with many falling sick after two years of relentless war.
"The scale of the disaster is huge. What we're scared of is that there is very poor hygiene, and all that pouring rain could enable the appearance of waterborne diseases like acute diarrhoea," he told Al Jazeera.
"The water is getting everywhere because those tents are mostly makeshift and are not protecting children," he added.
Gaza’s Government Media Office estimates that the enclave still needs roughly 300,000 tents or prefabricated units to meet the most basic housing needs following more than two years of conflict with Israel, which killed more than 70,000 Palestinians and destroyed critical infrastructure.
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