Bad weather, heavy rains turn life in Gaza into misery

Heavy rains and cold weather that have been going on for four days in the Gaza Strip have sent the lives of poor Gazan families into misery.

Mayor of the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah Sobhi Abu Rodwan told Xinhua that around one hundred homes in the western and eastern parts of the town were badly affected by the heavy rains, where rainwater leaked inside.

"The civil defense in Gaza worked all the morning and evening hours to evacuated the residents who live in houses that were affected by the heavy rain," said Rodwan, adding "no injuries were reported.

The mayor complained of a series of difficulties that faced the rescue crews of the municipality while they were fighting the heavy rains amid a severe shortage of electricity and the lack of fuels to keep electric generators up and running.

The municipality of Khan Younis, another town in southern Gaza Strip, said in an emailed press statement that the rainwater filled 20 homes in the area and water covered several main roads in the town and its suburbs.

Several areas in central and northern Gaza Strip were also affected by the heavy downpours and the coldness, according to local sources, which added that traffics in several areas in the blockaded enclave had come to a standstill due to the floods.

The municipal sources also said that the cold weather and the rains had paralyzed the daily life in the Gaza Strip and kept most of the populations in doors, where schools and universities closed and markets were empty of people. Endit