Last Friday morning, United Hatzalah held a mass casualty incident (MCI) training drill that simulated a terror attack. The drill involved dozens of emergency medical personnel, all of whom are part of the organization’s women’s initiative, as well as 50 simulated patients and dozens of spectators.
The simulated scenario involved a bus that had been shot and careened into several other vehicles leaving 50 people injured.
During the drill, which took place in Janana Park near Jerusalem, the atmosphere was tense and realistic, with lights, sirens, pyrotechnics, and volunteers in full gear rushing to the scene. The sound of ambulance sirens filled the air as the volunteers arrived to treat the simulated wounded who were running around, screaming in simulated pain and covered in fake blood.
One of United Hatzalah’s medevac helicopters was also on hand and transported one of the simulated patients to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital where the staff practiced receiving a patient from the chopper.
The volunteers worked tirelessly to triage and treat the wounded and faced the challenge of transporting critically injured patients to the hospital as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Since the drill was conducted just two days after Independence Day, United Hatzalah dedicated 75 new ambucycles and 75 new e-bikes which were funded by 75 donors in honor of Israel’s 75th anniversary.
“We want to extend our special thanks to the donors who made this possible,” said Dov Maisel, Vice President of Operations at United Hatzalah. “Our donors are partners in lifesaving in every sense of the word, and we opened this drill in specific to our donors, urging them to come and observe how we train for worst-case scenarios, even though we hope we never have to use what we have learned.”
“The organization has been on a mission to train all of its volunteers to be able to respond to mass casualty incidents, in light of the recent rise in terror attacks as well as previous MCIs such as Meron and Givat Ze’ev,” said Eli Beer, President and Founder of United Hatzalah. “We’re proud to say that Friday’s drill was a success, and all of the women volunteers who participated were able to gain hands-on knowledge of how to respond quickly and effectively to the scenario we presented and work together as a large team of responders in an organized fashion. This information will be vital to them should they ever face such a scenario in the field.”
Adele and Joel Sandberg and Amy Korenvaes, who spearheaded the organization’s new women’s initiative that aims to double the number of female volunteers in the organization in under five years, were guests of honor at the drill. Out of United Hatzalah’s 6,500 volunteers, 1,300 are women.
Also present was former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman and his wife Tammy who have been long-time supporters of the organization. Friedman spoke about the energy that emanated from the drill. “I am so excited to be here to see this drill,” Friedman said. “It’s the first time I got to see United Hatzalah’s helicopter in action. Dedicating 75 ambucycles and 75 electric bikes on Israel’s 75 anniversary was truly special, as was seeing all of the hard work of the volunteers who participated. It was a beautiful ceremony and all of the volunteers here are doing God’s work for the satisfaction of helping others in need. My wife and I are proud to be here to support the organization and be here on this wonderful day.”
Beer concluded: “The drill and vehicle dedication, with female EMTs taking center stage, highlights the organization’s commitment to empowering women and providing the fastest and most professional emergency medical response possible to those in need, especially during times of crisis.”
