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Power cuts in Gaza force shops to stop selling ice cream
'Half of the ice cream melted. What should we do with it? Losses, losses'
Power cuts in the Gaza Strip hinder local shops from selling their ice cream.
With temperatures reaching 93 degrees Fahrenheit, many Gazans want to cool down, however, local shop owners have faced an issue with melted stocks of ice cream, forcing them to stop selling it.
"Half of the ice cream melted. What should we do with it? Losses, losses," Fouad Awadallah, a supermarket owner, told Reuters.
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Also, the owner of the Kazdem Ice Cream shop explained how he had to use his own generators in order to keep his shop open.
"I can't switch off the generators even for a minute once the electricity goes," Mohammad Abu Shaban told the news agency.
More than 2.3 million people are packed into the narrow strip of land squeezed between Egypt and Israel, an area that would normally require around 500 megawatts of power per day during the summer months, according to local officials.
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However, Gaza only receives 120 megawatts from Israel while its own power plant contributes another 60 megawatts.
During a time of moderate weather, Gaza should be able to supply its population with 20 hours of electricity per day.
But the capacity of the power generating plant was impacted by greater demand due to high temperatures and soaring energy prices, resulting in only 10 hours of electricity per day.
The power shortages continue to generate discontent with the ruling Hamas faction, which blames the devastation of Gaza's economy on a 15-year-long Israeli-Egyptian blockade.