On Sunday, United Hatzalah of Israel hosted a Zoom meeting to announce its new campaign to raise $5 million to meet the urgent need of emergency services in response to the current and ongoing conflict with Iran.
“What’s going on from Iran is absolutely overwhelming, but our response is going to be overwhelming as well,” Jeremey Cole, public relations officer for UHI, told The Jewish Press afterward. “Right now we’re raising money for an emergency campaign to be able to purchase more life-protecting gear for our volunteers, more bulletproof helmets and vests as well as the need for medical supplies, as this could be going on for another week or so. We never want to feel like there’s a deficit. We want to be able to continue to provide the same life-saving care.”
UHI runs alongside other national security and emergency service providers, including the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) the homefront command and other ambulatory services. However, unlike its counterparts in the United States, UHI services all of the citizens of Israel. “We are like the Uber of ambulances and every volunteer has a medical bag, which is why we have a 90 second to three minute response time,” Cole said. “We have 8,000 volunteers and they are Jewish, Christian, Druze, Muslim, men, women, Arab and Israeli of all backgrounds; they are fully volunteers and our services are fully free as well.”
So far, the Iranian missile and drone attacks have been targeting the north and central regions. Around the time of the call, a ballistic missile that landed in a residential building in Bat Yam, Israel, just south of Tel Aviv, left nine people dead, including two children and one teen, and more than 200 wounded. The damage in the impact area caused complete devastation where at least one tall building took a direct hit. Windows and doors were blasted away for several blocks due to the force up the impact of the missle, and many will likely not be able to return to their homes for an indefinite time period. In the Arab-Israeli town of Tamra, four people were killed and 14 injured. Iranian missiles had also targeted an oil refinery in Haifa.
“It’s always hard to see how Iran targets civilians and civilian centers and the devastation it causes, but there’s something beautiful about how the communities have come together,” Cole noted. “People rush into action to pull people out of the rubble and to evacuate them to hospitals or render life-saving aid on the spot.”
When asked about the morale and reactions Cole is witnessing from the civilian population, Cole admitted, “It’s a mix, everyone has reason to be afraid, but Israelis are remaining strong right now.”
Cole said alongside its search and rescue operation, UHI deployed its new mobile emergency clinic to provide immediate medical and psychotrauma assistance. He said the efforts of UHI’s volunteers remains defiant to Iran’s goals. “We not going to just rollover and play dead; we will retaliate and we are preparing for conflict no matter where it is – Iran, Yemen and the Lebanese border, should Hezbollah decide to act up. We are looking and planning to stock up our branches throughout the country with medical equipment, generators, backup radio units and protective gear.
UHI said its immediate needs include additional protective gear, vests and helmets. These are essential, as each missile attack may include a follow-up strike or a possible un-detonated bomb on the scene. Additionally, they can use more radios and oxygen tanks. Cole stressed, “These are not your typical rockets coming in from Gaza or a suicide bomber. These are rockets that knock down 10-story buildings.”
About 600 people joined the “United Hatzalah Emergency Zoom Briefing On Israel Under Attack From Iran” invite. On the zoom, Eli Beer, president of UHI said, “Never in my life have I felt like I feel now. All these years we knew Iran was a very powerful enemy and wanted to annihilate every single one of us. Its mission over the years was to build weapons that could completely destroy Israel; every Jew in Israel should be dead according to their belief. So I was scared, but also very proud as a Jew and Israeli and an American – seeing the Israeli flag flying above Tehran.”
“Thank you to all our heroic volunteers who go into danger to rescue those in need to save lives,” said Mark Gerson, chairman of UHI. “Hopefully we can raise 5 million in the coming hours and days so that we have the equipment it needs to do its sacred work. Each of us has the opportunity to be the indispensable and actual partner with the 8,000 volunteers on the ground.” Gerson pledged to match the first half million that comes in from existing or new donors.
Gerson pointed out that when you visit the UHI headquarters or warehouse, it’s astonishing to see how much stuff is required. “The amount of equipment for 8,000 volunteers… it’s all enabled by one thing: and that’s money.”
To donate to the UHI, visit the website israelrescue.org.
