With every rainfall, Gaza risks losing access to power and healthcare

Résumé détaillé

Heavy rains flood shelters, damage solar power systems and threaten essential healthcare services.

Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip – As the rain intensified, 65-year-old Abu Sajed rushed to place buckets and pots strategically around his modest room in central Gaza.

The stone walls and tarpaulin roof offered little protection to his makeshift home, east of Salah al-Din Street, near the “Yellow Line” in Bureij refugee camp.

“We could no longer stay in bed because of the heavy rain. We moved to chairs in the only part of the room the water had not reached and waited for the rain to stop,” said Abu Sajed, who has diabetes.

He searched for his blood glucose monitor in the darkness. But it was soaked and no longer working.

His family’s solar power system, used for lighting and charging phones, was also damaged. Water also flooded his daughter’s neighbouring tent, soaking her clothes and belongings and destroying the inverter connected to her solar system.

“I did not know what to do. I could not protect myself or my family. Even going to the toilet had become difficult because of all the water,” he said.

His ordeal continued after the rain stopped. The following morning, as he tried to leave the room, his foot slipped on the muddy floor and he fell. Because of poor health, he could not get up alone. His wife and daughter struggled to lift him.

Recent rainfall has added to Gaza’s suffering, and due to Israel’s siege, most people lack adequate housing.

But the impact extends beyond flooded shelters and damaged belongings. It also threatens the energy sources residents depend on, particularly amid Gaza’s continuing electricity crisis.

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