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Earth barriers in the sewage disposal
pools break killing four and rendering hundreds of families homeless in the Bedouin
village, many remain missing
PCHR Calls upon the International
Community and the Palestinian Government to Provide Emergency Shelters for the
Victims of the Disaster
At approximately 10:00 on Tuesday, 27 March 2007, four
Palestinians, an elderly woman and 3 children, were killed and 20 others
injured in the Um El-Naser (Bedouin) village, when the earth barriers around a
sewage disposal pool broke 150
meters to the north of the village. As a result, sewage
water flooded from the pool flooded the village, and the effect was more
devastating due to the fact that the pool’s elevation was higher than the
village, giving the flood more power and destructive force. The level of sewage
water was 2 meters
high in the village. Four people were drowned to death, and 20 others were
injured by the flooding. Emergency crews from the Civil Defense Corps, Medical
Crews, and Naval Police were still trying to find missing people at the time of
publication. More than 250 homes were damaged, including 20 homes that were
totally destroyed. In addition, substantial damage was caused to commercial
shops, private vehicles, and other services in the area.
Medical sources in Kamal
Odwan
Hospital
in Beit Lahia, Shifa
Hospital
in Gaza,
and the Medical Emergency Relief clinic in the village informed PCHR that they
received the bodies of four dead victims, all of them residents of the Bedouin
village:
- Nasra
Nuseir Salem
Ermeilat (70);
- Suheir
Salab Abu Ghrara (17);
- Mohammad
Salem Masek
Abu Atieq (1); and
- Jamal
Barak Abu Safra (3).
In addition, 20 injured people were rescued by emergency
crews. Eight women were among the injured.
PCHR’s staff rushed to the area to assess the damage and
size of the environmental disaster. The staff noted a state of mass migration
by the residents of the stricken village. Residents informed PCHR’s staff that
4 people remain missing, including an elderly woman and a child. Rescue efforts
continued at the time of publication.
It is noted that PCHR has warned of an environmental and
humanitarian disaster in the area a long time ago. The Centre called upon
responsible authorities, including Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF), to work to
avert such a disaster a few years ago. In addition, the Centre warned against
the contamination of underground water resources in the area by the sewage
pools. In this context, the Centre reminds of the most notable elements of its
position in the past:
- In
1993, the Centre objected to IOF efforts forcibly transfer the civilian
residents of the area, known then as Sa’ad El-Ansari area, and exerted all
possible legal effort to stop the eviction. The Center’s efforts succeeded in
keeping the residents in their homes.
- At
the end of 1997, the PNA evicted some residents from Sa’ad El-Ansari area to
the area adjacent to the sewage disposal pools in the area. Today, the area is
known as Um El-Naser Village. At the time, PCHR expressed serious concern over
the lives of these civilians as a result of the health risks posed by these
pools, including stench, insects, and contamination of underground water
resources. The Centre also warned of the possibility of flooding.
- The
project of transferring these sewage pools to the east of Gaza City was
delayed for more than two years due to delays in importing pipes and pumps from
abroad as a result of the closure imposed by IOF on the Gaza Strip. In
addition, IOF military operations in the project area prevented workers from
free and safe access to the area to conduct their work. It is noted that this
project is funded by the World Bank, European Commission, Sweden,
and other donors.
- On
14 September 2006, the Centre in its capacity as the legal representative of
residents of Nada Housing Project in the area sent a complaint to Mr. Ismail
Abu Shammala, Governor of the Northern Gaza Strip. The complaint demanded a
cessation of diggings by the Palestinian Water Authority and Northern Gaza municipalities to dig a new
sewage pool. The complaint made clear the health and environmental risks of the
new pool on residents of the area. The Centre demanded that the Governor stop
the digging as soon as possible. The Governor replied on 20 September 2006 and
stated that he understands the scope and danger of the problem. However, he
justified the implementation of the project by stating that there is a real
danger of flooding in Um El-Naser Village and Mansheya area in Beit Lahia. He
also stated that the new pool is temporary till the removal of the pits to the
eastern part of the governorate in April 2007.
- PCHR
views the construction of a new sewage pool on an area of 20 dunums at a
distance of 150 meters
from Um El-Naser village as a factor that adds to the danger. In addition, the
earth barriers built inside the pools to protect them do not provide the
minimum safety requirement against high sewage water level in the new pool.
Many area residents stated that since the construction of the new pool, the
pumping of sewage to the new pool was conducted around the clock. Thus, it was
only natural for sewage levels to rise and for the earth barriers to break,
causing the disaster in the Um El-Naser (Bedouin) Village. It is strange that
the responsible parties in the PNA dealt with the issue in a negligent manner,
despite their full understanding of the situation and the imminent threat to
the lives of civilians. The issue was not prioritized; and the safety of nearly
5,000 civilian residents of the village and thousands more in surrounding areas
were not taken into serious consideration.
- The
pool that broke was the new pool that was completed nearly 6 months ago, after
the old pools reached maximum capacity. It is noted that the pumping operation
to the new pool was conducted under the supervision of a technical engineer.
- All
the reasons and elements above are behind the environmental disaster that hit
Um El-Naser village. The victims’ information is preliminary. The Centre had
forewarned of this disaster, and will work to public a detailed report on its
investigation into the issue.
The Centre calls upon:
- the
PNA to open an immediate investigation into the disaster to determine the
responsible parties that took the decision that did not provide the minimum
safety requirements for the lives of civilians; the Centre demands the public
disclosure of the findings in the media;
- the
PNA to fulfill its responsibility and provide emergency assistance,
including shelter, for more than 3,000 people uprooted as their homes
were damaged;
- the
PNA and International Community, including humanitarian organizations working
in the OPT to provide the food, medication, clothing, and water needs for the
uprooted families, and to provide medical crews to perform examinations on the
affected civilians out of fear of contamination or injury by the sewage water;
- the
International Community to exert immediate pressure on IOF to immediately allow
the start of implementation of the project to transfer the sewage pools to the
eastern part of the northern Gaza Strip, to ensure the safety of technical
crews working on the project, and to refrain from firing munitions into the
project area. The Centre calls upon the International Community to provide
immediate emergency assistance, including medication, food, living essentials,
and equipment that will help in finding the missing persons.
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