Israeli media reported on Saturday that waters have washed away part of the floating dock in Gaza, which was established with the help of American forces to facilitate aid delivery to the Palestinian enclave.
Channel 12 in Israel mentioned that waters dragged a portion of the American-made floating dock to the beaches of Ashdod, about a week after its inauguration. It explained that part of the marine dock had detached and drifted to the beach of Ashdod, apparently due to the strong sea waves.
The channel added that naval forces arrived at the incident site and assisted in securing the drifting piece for retrieval, without any injuries occurring.
Meanwhile, the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth clarified that the detached part from the floating harbor was an “American barge” being transported by a warship to the marine dock off Gaza. The barge separated from the ship due to high waves and began drifting towards Ashdoot beach. The newspaper noted that the American warship attempted a rescue but encountered difficulties itself, leading to another nearby ship being called to assist in the rescue operation.
The cost of constructing the floating dock in Gaza, which was inaugurated last week, is estimated to reach $320 million, providing a new route for the flow of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the sector.