Residents living on the ground floor of building on Al-Nafaq Street, Gaza, were today ordered to evacuate their homes, while others were told to move to the second floor, for fear of flooding after the heavy rainfall led to the Sheikh Radwan reservoir reaching full capacity.
In a press statement, the Civil Defence forces said crews are still working hard to control the situationand prevent any disasters or casualties.
They called on residents to call the civil defence forces by dialing 102, or through the central operations centre 109, if they fear they are in any danger.
Gaza mayor Nizar Hijazi yesterday warned of, the “humanitarian catastrophe” that may occur due to high rainfall and the water levels in the reservoir.
He said the reservoir was one of the largest in the city and is capable of receiving large volumes of rainwater.
He added: “We fear a humanitarian catastrophe, and the reservoir flooding which will lead todangers and disasters risks to the residents of the surrounding area.”
“The infrastructure of the Gaza Strip is weak and ill-equipped to receive any increased rainfall;because of the disaster caused by the increased rainfall last year and the recent war which destroyed a large part of the Strip.”
Last year the Palestinian territories were hit with heavy rainfall which caused a number of homes to flood.
Hijazi said: “The municipality has contacted a number of Arab and international groups to improve and expand the reservoir and to provide equipment to speed up the transfer of its water to the sea.” No party has responded to these requests.
He stressed that municipal crews were working around the clock to prevent a catastrophe in theregion in light of the lack of the necessary resources due to the continuing Israeli siege.
MEMO Photographer: Mohammed Asad