'People were screaming': Deadly landslide a warning for winter in Gaza

Darkness enveloped a displacement camp in Gaza as cries echoed from tents, a grim reminder of winter's perils for the region's displaced population. Ayman Ayyad, a 27-year-old displaced Palestinian, rushed to the scene when he heard the screams. Together with other residents, Ayyad discovered a rain-soaked mound of sand had collapsed onto several tents, burying children and causing people to scream in terror.

Ayyad and other young men began digging through the darkness and bitter cold, desperately trying to free those trapped. Civil defense crews eventually arrived to aid the rescue efforts. Sadly, five people, including three children, lost their lives in the collapse, according to Palestinian Civil Defence officials.

Ayyad described the scene as one of the most difficult he had ever witnessed, witnessing people buried alive. The tents had previously flooded during a storm, and their occupants had repaired them with whatever materials they could find. However, the families believed the worst weather had passed. Instead, rainwater destabilized a sand mound behind the tents, causing it to give way without warning.

Civil defense spokesman Mahmoud Bassal explained that the families had not anticipated rainwater to pose such a threat. The search for more than 10 injured people and the bodies of the deceased continued for over two hours. Bassal pointed out that the shortage of heavy rescue equipment and Israeli restrictions on machinery entering Gaza could have contributed to the loss of life.

The collapse came after days of heavy rain and strong winds swept across Gaza, flooding displacement camps and damaging structures weakened by bombardment. Over 70,000 tents sheltering displaced families were submerged in water, with some camps experiencing flooding up to a meter high. Dozens of walls and buildings also collapsed, resulting in an estimated $3 million in damage.

Ismail Al Thawabta, head of Gaza's government media office, reported that civil defense teams received more than 2,100 distress calls during the storm but could only respond to 218 due to limited personnel and equipment. The scale of flooding extended well beyond Deir Al Balah, with residents in Jabalia Al Balad enduring water inundating their tent homes, including their young children.

For months, residents had appealed for strong tents and tarpaulins, but their pleas went unheeded. The storm deepened concerns about Gaza's displaced population's ability to survive the winter, facing cold temperatures, more flooding, and potential building collapses. Emergency crews admitted they lacked the resources to respond to the volume of calls for help.

Gaza officials called for the delivery of tents, tarpaulins, and rescue equipment to mitigate the risks faced by displaced families. Ayyad's harrowing experience, marked by the collapsed tents and the tragic deaths of children, served as a stark reminder of the dire conditions facing Gaza's displaced population during the winter months.