NOVANEWS
-
A Palestinian boy stands in a flooded area following heavy rains in Gaza City, Friday, Dec. 13, 2013. Hundreds of houses were flooded following a rain storm in Gaza. Early snow has surprised many Israelis and Palestinians as a blustery storm, dubbed Alexa, brought gusty winds, torrential rains and heavy snowfall to parts of the Middle East. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)
-
Dark clouds overcasts Gaza City, Friday, Dec. 13, 2013. Early snow has surprised many Israelis and Palestinians as a blustery storm, dubbed Alexa, brought gusty winds, torrential rains and heavy snowfall to parts of the Middle East. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)
GAZA CITY, GAZA STRIP – An official says Gaza’s rescue service has evacuated more than 4,000 people from homes flooded after four days of heavy rain across the territory.
The downpour continued Saturday. It’s part of a storm that covered Jerusalem and some of the West Bank with thick snow.
In Gaza, some of those trapped by rising waters were evacuated by fishing boats. A local TV station showed a rescuer standing on the shoulders of another man in a boat as they tried to reach people in a third-floor apartment.
Mohammed al-Madaina of the Gaza rescue service says efforts were hampered by lack of fuel and power, a result of a tightened Egyptian border closure. Israel and Egypt have restricted access to Gaza since the Islamic militant Hamas seized the territory in 2007.
The downpour continued Saturday. It’s part of a storm that covered Jerusalem and some of the West Bank with thick snow.
In Gaza, some of those trapped by rising waters were evacuated by fishing boats. A local TV station showed a rescuer standing on the shoulders of another man in a boat as they tried to reach people in a third-floor apartment.
Mohammed al-Madaina of the Gaza rescue service says efforts were hampered by lack of fuel and power, a result of a tightened Egyptian border closure. Israel and Egypt have restricted access to Gaza since the Islamic militant Hamas seized the territory in 2007.
