Floods destroy homes of earthquake survivors in northwestern Syria

Adwan Camp, Syria – Dozens of camps for displaced people in northwestern Syria were damaged by flooding after a severe storm hit the region late Saturday.

Hundreds of shelters have been damaged as torrential rain hits the western countryside of Idlib province overnight. Survivors of the two earthquakes of February 6Roads were also impassable in some areas, according to the Syrian Civil Defense Force, also known as the White Helmets.

In camps in the towns of Hafsarjah and Bishmaroon, several shelters were flooded and shops in Adwan village were destroyed, an official from the Syrian Civil Defense Service told Al Jazeera. Camps in the western and northeastern countryside of Aleppo were also damaged.

“The torrent has damaged more than 40 camps set up for earthquake victims, damaged more than 700 tents, minorly injured children and destroyed shops, as well as blocked many roads. In cities and towns,” said deputy director Mounir Al-Mustafa. Syria Civil Defensetold Al Jazeera.

Al Mustafa has more than 300 tents in Al Jazeera earthquake survivor 20 camps were damaged. He said most of them are rapidly established and lack adequate protection from winter storms.

“The tragedies experienced by displaced persons cannot be resolved by providing temporary services in camps, as tragedies are endless and can rob people of their right to live safely in their homes. , the only solution is to provide security for civilians to return home, which will also reduce the need for humanitarian and relief assistance,” Mustafa said.

Askarah al-Muhammad said she and her three daughters had to flee the tents in Sahl al-Rouj’s Adwan camp when they started flooding overnight.

“While I was in the tent with my daughters, the rain seeped into the tent and washed away all our belongings. said 50-year-old Muhammad.

al muhammad said She lost contact with her daughters for hours in the chaos. They fled overnight before she found them at a nearby village home on Sunday.

“It was a very difficult night. was,” Al-Muhammad said.

“Today I lost everything in my tent and I can’t believe the disaster after disaster that will befall us. Illness and age prevent me from working.”

Abu Abdullah, the head of the Adwan camp, told Al Jazeera that most of the families in the low-lying camp had fled from the town of Qalaat al-Madiq in the western countryside of Hama province. rice field.

“About 223 of the 240 families in the camp have lost their homes as a result of the torrential rains,” said Abu Abdullah.

“All camp residents have been transferred to schools and mosques in nearby villages as a temporary solution to rebuild the camps, pending review of our situation by international agencies providing urgent assistance. .”

Meteorologists said the storm was expected to continue on Sunday, with cooler temperatures predicted for the region.

Saleh al-Ahmad, 37, lives in Adwan camp with his wife and two daughters.

He said he rushed to get his daughters and sick wife out of the tent when it rained late Saturday night.

With his tent uninhabitable after the floods, Al-Ahmad temporarily moved his family out to live with his sister, who lives in a nearby camp that was unaffected by the storm.

“Camping, earthquakes, floods. Life has become very difficult since the day we left town to escape the bombings. [Syrian President Bashar al-] Assad’s army and Russia,” Al-Ahmad said.

“I am tired of calling on all nations of the world to intervene to resolve our tragedy and return us to our cities and villages.”