Gazans Fix Damaged Water Reservoirs as War Pushed Prices Up
(AWP) - In Israel’s relentless war on the Gaza Strip, even water reservoirs have not survived the shrapnel from warplane missiles and tank shells.
As the prices of new barrels soared due to lack of supply, some Palestinians resorted to having the old reservoirs maintained in outdated ways so they may be able to use them again.
Ibrahim Abou Khousa, an owner of a workshop for the maintenance of water reservoirs in Deir al-Balah, said many people were having their barrels that were damaged in the bombardment repaired because there are no substances available to make new ones.
“We rehabilitate the barrels torn in the war. There are no substances to make new barrels as the factories that make them and the workshops purchasing the new barrels were bombarded,” he said.
“We receive customers who have barrels damaged in the shelling. We repair and rehabilitate them so the people may manage to get their houses’ needs for water, the most important thing in life,” noted Abu Khousa.
The workshop owner pointed out that the cost was double.
“For instance, a barrel with a capacity of 1,000 liters used to be worth 400 shekels. Today, the same barrel, not even new, is worth 700 or 800 shekels. We are welding the old barrels because people cannot afford purchasing new ones. They think it would be better for them to spend 50 or 60 shekels to have their barrels repaired instead of buying new ones,” he said.
Mohamed al-Basous, a Palestinian who was displaced from al-Shojayia to Deir al-Balah, said he left everything behind and had to buy a torn water reservoir, which he carried over his shoulders to the workshop to have it fixed.
“I bought an expensive barrel. I had to buy it while it was torn and unfit for use. In the past, when a barrel was torn, I threw it away, but now I had to buy a barrel that is burnt and torn from bullets and projectiles,” he complained.
“I had it welded and repaired. The price of a new one is ten times this rehabilitated barrel,” Basous added.