Sewage runoff from collapsed reservoirs Tuesday submerged about 250 homes in the village of Umm Naser, in northern Gaza.
Local authorities said the accident might have been caused by obsolete infrastructure, the result of insufficient investment in modernization due to economic sanctions imposed against the Palestinian National Authority.
"The facility was built in 1970 to serve 50,000 people, but it currently serves more than 200,000. We need international assistance to build new stations," Bashar Ismail, the coordinator of international projects for the water supply service, told RIA Novosti.
Palestinian Interior Minister Hani Al-Qawasmi rushed to the affected region immediately. On the way, gunmen attacked his car and five people inside were killed.
