Heavy rain from the first winter storm of the season has flooded about 70,000 tents sheltering displaced Palestinians across Gaza, local authorities said on Saturday, 7 November.

Gaza's Government Media Office said at least 70,000 tents had been flooded in the past 12 hours, affecting tens of thousands of displaced people. The territory's civil defence service said it had received 1,500 distress calls from residents, and water levels at several shelter sites rose by 30 to 40 centimetres. Injuries were reported, including some described as serious after walls collapsed, although no flooding fatalities had been reported.

Municipal and civil defence officials said they were unable to cope because of fuel shortages and damaged equipment, and said Israel had destroyed hundreds of vehicles, including bulldozers used to pump water, during the war. The Israeli military agency that coordinates aid, COGAT, did not immediately comment.

The flooding was warned about in advance. A United Nations assessment published days earlier found about 950,000 people in displacement sites at medium to high risk of flooding, and said Gaza needed about 121,000 tents, 561,000 tarpaulins and 1.7 million mattresses ahead of winter. Shelter partners inside Gaza held only about 2,800 tents. Gaza's emergency committee said more than one million displaced people face the dangers of winter and about 200,000 tents and heating supplies are urgently needed.

Jonathan Veitch, UNICEF's representative for Palestine, said aid workers were being stopped in the street by people pleading for assistance, and linked the shortages to Israeli restrictions on heavy machinery and supplies. Palestinian authorities say more than 74,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the war began in October 2023.

With winter only beginning, aid agencies warn the storm previews months of cold, rain and flooding for families in makeshift shelter.

[Source: reuters.com](https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/heavy-rain-floods-tents-housing-gaza-displaced-people-aid-shortages-hamper-2026-11-07/) | [Source: eastleighvoice.co.ke](https://eastleighvoice.co.ke/world/421170/70000-displacement-tents-flooded-as-winter-storm-hits-gaza)