Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians currently live in tents that offer no protection from the heavy winter rains.
Seven babies have already died in the Gaza Strip from hypothermia, the director of Gaza’s field hospitals says the news channel For Al-Jazeera. A total of eight people have died from hypothermia during December and January.
About 90 percent of Gaza’s residents, or about 1.9 million people, have had to leave their homes because of the fighting between Israel and Hamas.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians currently live in tents that offer no protection from the heavy winter rains. In addition, there is a shortage of basic supplies required for winter conditions in Gaza, such as firewood, gas, warm clothes and blankets, as well as intact tents and various rain shelters.
According to the UN estimate about half a million Palestinians live in flood risk areas.
Hypothermia can strike even if the temperature outside remains the same above four degreesthe US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. This is affected, for example, by exposure to rain and humidity.
Young children are particularly susceptible to hypothermia. In addition, malnutrition weakens the body’s ability to produce heat.