The temporary U.S. pier that was built to help facilitate more aid into the Gaza Strip has been plagued with one round of bad news after another.
Now, it is being reported that aid operations from the pier have been suspended because of rough seas causing damage to the pier. The Associated Press reported that Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh announced on Tuesday the pier will be pulled out and sent to the southern Israeli city of Ashdod, where U.S. Central Command will repair it. Singh said the fixes will take “at least over a week,” and then the pier will need to be anchored back into the beach in Gaza.
The rough seas also caused one of the boats that are used to ferry aid between ships and the pier to become beached.
CNN reported that part of the pier disconnected on Sunday. The parking area will have to be reconnected to the causeway before the pier can be used again.
The pier had only been in operation for two weeks before needing repairs. In that time, the Department of Defense admitted none of the 500 metric tons of aid reached the intended people in Gaza. The trucks carrying the aid had been looted before reaching their final destination.
Before that, the pier, costing the U.S. over $320 million to build, ran into other severe problems before it started operating. While it was being constructed in April, the pier came under fire from mortar shells. While workers were forced to find cover, no one was injured. None of the terrorist groups in Gaza took credit for the attack.
The rough seas also caused one of the boats that are used to ferry aid between ships and the pier to become beached on the shores of Israel for multiple days. When a different boat was sent to get the first one unstuck, the rescue boat also became beached, according to the Times of Israel. Two other boats broke free of their moorings and had to be anchored near the pier.
Five days ago, U.S. Central Command announced a U.S. service member had sustained a non-combat-related injury aboard MV Benavidez (T-AKR 306) while in support of the humanitarian aid mission to Gaza. The service member was transported to a medical facility and was listed in critical condition.