PHOTOS: Floods hit Gaza as war-hit infrastructure struggles

Hard hit during the summer’s war, civilian infrastructure is having a hard time coping with heavy rains.

Photos and reporting: Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org

The latest storm to hit the eastern Mediterranean region flooded large areas of Gaza City this week. The Al-Nafeq neighborhood, one of the lowest areas of Gaza City, suffered from severe flooding, exacerbated by the damage Gaza’s civilian infrastructure sustained during the war with Israel this past summer.

Entire streets were flooded with as much as 1.5 meters of water. A number of people, primarily the elderly and children, were rescued from the hardest-hit areas by emergency responders.

The homes in the neighborhood, many of which haven’t yet been repaired since the war, are now sustaining water damage. A large number of residents, having only returned to their homes in recent weeks since the war, were forced to take their belongings and leave once again.

Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org
Residents of Al-Nafaq in high waters flooding the neighborhood, Gaza City, November 27, 2014. Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org