Gaza Launches Urgent Emergency Plan to Evacuate and Demolish Collapsing Buildings

GAZA CITY, Sept 21 — Gaza’s Government Media Office announced the launch of an urgent emergency plan led by the Public Works and Housing Ministry to evacuate and demolish 255 war-damaged buildings considered at imminent risk of total collapse.

The coordinated initiative, executed in cooperation with various government ministries, local institutions, and international and United Nations bodies, aims to eliminate severe safety hazards and protect displaced residents sheltering in unstable structures. The decision follows multiple partial and complete structural failures across the enclave, including the collapse of the Al-Saada building in Gaza City on Wednesday, which killed 21 Palestinians.

According to an official statement from the media office, authorities have been instructed to immediately commence field procedures. These actions include placing warning signs around hazardous sites and coordinating efforts to secure temporary shelter for affected families. Specialized government committees are currently conducting field assessments of damaged property and identifying vulnerable residents living inside these structures.

However, officials warned that execution of the plan faces critical obstacles. The operations are heavily hindered by a severe lack of funding, an acute shortage of heavy machinery and demolition equipment resulting from the ongoing Israeli blockade, and a scarcity of safe, available land to accommodate relocated families.

The Public Works and Housing Ministry previously reported that approximately 3,000 buildings throughout Gaza have been classified as dangerous or at risk of collapse due to heavy damage sustained during the war. Figures from Gaza’s Health Ministry indicate that at least 61 Palestinians have been killed in building collapses linked to wartime structural damage.

Widespread destruction of residential infrastructure has forced thousands of displaced Palestinians to remain inside compromised structures due to severe shortages of alternative shelter. Since a ceasefire took effect on October 10, 2025, dozens of damaged buildings have collapsed on occupants who lacked proper housing options amid strict restrictions on the entry of prefabricated homes and temporary shelter supplies into the enclave.

Despite repeated appeals from Palestinian government entities, UN agencies, and international aid organizations urging the entry of essential shelter materials ahead of harsh weather conditions, these requests have yet to receive a positive response.

Since October 8, 2023, the military conflict in Gaza has claimed the lives of more than 73,000 Palestinians and injured over 174,000 others, with official figures estimating that approximately 90 percent of the enclave’s total infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed.