Rain floods 70,000 tents in Gaza, leaving thousands of displaced people facing shelter and aid crisis

Heavy rain has flooded at least 70,000 tents housing displaced Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, leaving thousands of people affected. Alongside losing their shelter, their beds, blankets and essential belongings have been soaked, and the hardship has brought a fresh shelter and aid crisis.

In Gaza's tent camps, some people are trying to repair tents damaged by the rain, others are packing sand around their tents to keep the water out, and still others are moving their children to safety from tents already under water.

A Reuters report said local authorities in Gaza announced on Saturday that at least 70,000 tents of displaced Palestinians across the strip had been flooded by rainwater. Thousands of people were affected. Several people were injured, but no deaths had been reported so far.

Gaza's civil defence department said it had received 1,500 emergency calls from residents in distress because of the rain. Three abandoned houses also collapsed, though no one was injured in those incidents.

Resident Oulfat Magdub tried unsuccessfully to remove the water from her own tent. She said her tent was flooded on the very first day of the rain. In rain two weeks earlier, her bed had also been soaked, forcing her to sleep for four days on a blanket spread on the floor. The same situation has returned this time.

Local city authorities and civil defence officials said the shortage of fuel and the loss of essential equipment were making it difficult to manage the situation. They alleged that Israeli attacks had destroyed water pumps along with hundreds of vehicles and bulldozers.

Hamas has alleged that Israel is not allowing tents and construction materials into Gaza. However, COGAT, the Israeli military body that coordinates aid, did not immediately comment on the allegation.

With tents flooded by rainwater, the shelter and aid crisis facing Gaza's displaced families has become acute once again.