RAMALLAH, Jan. 19 (JMCC) - Flooding damaged homes and closed roads throughout Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories Monday.

In Gaza, civil defense teams worked to evacuate dozens of families from the Mighraqa and Kufr al-Deek areas. Palestinians reported some three meters of water moving from the Gaza-Israel border into low-lying areas. 

The spreading of sewage raised fears of contamination and disease. Paramedics took five children to the hospital after their homes were flooded, reported Xinua.

Jerusalem's Wadi al-Helwa neighborhood experienced a cave-in earlier this week in the vicinity of Israeli archeological excavations. The heavy rains raised fears of additional structural collapse in this heavily-populated Silwan region, according to al-Jazeera television.

In the early evening, Israel closed its borders with Jordan and Egypt due to the heavy rainfall.

Half of the region's average annual rainfall was dumped on the region in torrents throughout the evening and night-time hours. Hail was also seen in areas of high elevation.