Torrential rain in Gaza caused a sand embankment to collapse onto a camp for displaced families south of Deir al-Balah, killing a woman and three children, according to Al-Monitor. The incident, which occurred late on Sunday, left six others injured and highlighted the vulnerability of displaced Palestinians as the winter season begins. Medics reported that the rocky sand bank washed away, burying three tents completely under rubble.

Khaleej Times reported that Gaza’s civil defence service initially announced five deaths, including two women and three children, before the Hamas-run health ministry clarified on Monday that only one woman was among the dead. MyJoyOnline noted that rescuers used bare hands and shovels to dig victims from beneath the boulders and sand. A relative of the victims, Amal Al-Zein, told Reuters that those who survived the war are now dying from collapsing structures and sand mounds.

The collapse was part of a broader weather event that began on Saturday, when heavy rains flooded approximately 70,000 tents across the territory, according to the Hamas-run government media office. Al-Monitor cited the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, which stated that more than 26,000 households reported damage to their shelters or belongings. MyJoyOnline added that water levels reached up to 1.5 meters in some areas, and civil defence responders could only address 10% of the 2,100 distress calls received.

Mahmoud Basal, spokesman for Gaza’s civil defence, told Reuters that residents often place tents near sand banks for protection, but that "the only solution is reconstruction." Al-Monitor noted that while a US-brokered ceasefire last year called for reconstruction, progress has been slow due to disagreements over Hamas disarmament and Israeli troop withdrawals. Israel’s military coordination body, Cogat, said it has delivered over 91,000 tents and waste removal trucks as part of a winterization plan, though it continues to restrict equipment that could be used militarily.

Karl Baker, the International Organization for Migration’s regional crisis co-ordinator, told the BBC that Gaza’s 2.1 million population is confined to 30% of the territory’s area. He described current aid levels as insufficient, comparing them to a small band-aid, and called for more in-kind donations and funding to improve drainage and shelter quality for the coming winter.