Heavy rain and strong winds swept across Gaza, flooding displacement camps and leaving families struggling to keep warm. In the al-Mina camp in northern Gaza, 29-year-old Rana Adnan Hmeida spent the night awake holding her two-month-old daughter as water seeped into their tent and soaked their bedding, blankets, and clothes.
Since midnight, families in the camp faced the brunt of the storm as rising waters turned the ground into pools of muddy water. Hmeida said her children were left shivering from the cold. Her husband, Sameh Hmeida, said their tent lacked tarpaulins or insulating materials due to its close proximity to the sea.
Water levels rose by 30 to 40 centimetres at several camps following the rain. The civil defence agency received hundreds of calls as storms struck regions where Palestinians are enduring their fourth winter outside their homes since the war began in October 2023.
Raed Abu Amsha said his tent collapsed entirely during the storm. The shelter housed nine children, including four from his late brother, and the short storm soaked all their blankets and clothes.
In central Gaza, rainfall also threatened permanent structures in Nuseirat camp damaged by Israeli bombardments. Nasser al-Hajj lives in a tower block hit by an Israeli strike in September 2025. Debris from upper floors left a large hole in his ceiling, allowing water to pour inside.
Al-Hajj stated that an engineer warned him the apartment is dangerous and risks collapse during bad weather. He sent his children to a neighbour’s home during the storm while two autistic children sheltered in the guard room. He added that high rent and unsafe tents left him with no other options.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, about 950,000 displaced people in Gaza live in flood-prone areas. More than 400,000 people reside in high-risk zones, while roughly 44,000 Palestinians occupy structurally unsafe buildings.
Data shows over 4,000 buildings require full or partial demolition due to air strikes. Shelter assistance covers only 18 percent of the needs of nearly 294,250 families.
The Gaza Municipality faces severe obstacles in managing the storms. Around 15 kilometres of rainwater drainage lines and 212 kilometres of sewage networks are damaged. Municipality spokesperson Hosni Muhanna stated that the remaining system handles no more than 20 percent of rainwater.
Muhanna warned that efforts to clear drains and run water pumps are limited by acute shortages of fuel, equipment, and spare parts. More than 2,000 buildings in Gaza City alone remain at risk of collapse amid more than 25 million tonnes of rubble.
In Nuseirat, emergency committee official Adli Awad said workers are distributing tents and digging channels to divert rainwater. However, he confirmed that the vast number of people in need far exceeds available stocks.
