The heroes of the 7th of October are revealed. And this time, Malek, a senior EMT and a paramedic student at the Rahat MDA station.
“On Saturday, at 6:23, I get a call from a friend that tells me he is on his way to the Tzochar MDA station and there is a Red Alert siren. I told him, “Forget it, I don’t think that there is anything, there must be a fault in the system.” I get organized and leave for my shift. Then a Red Alert begins to be heard all over South and yet I don’t even begin to fathom the whole matter.
The paramedic who is the station manager and I get a call from the Deputy Regional Director who tells us that this is a real attack. He says we need to man all of the vehicles. I, as a station assistant, start to call drivers to come operate ambulances. Within half an hour from the first alert we were already fully manned. The night shift teams stay on to continue answering emergency calls.
At 7:15 we get the first call to Netivot after a report of a shooting incident. On the way I put on a helmet and a protective vest, and a report comes in that there are terrorists in a white vehicle on the route I’m taking, shooting at people. I carefully drive ahead, and can hear on the MDA radio that there are already numerous dead and wounded. I approach the location and suddenly a white vehicle blocks me. I still couldn’t understand the complete situation. Israeli soldiers came out of the vehicle and handed three casualties over to us – one soldier, two civilians, all in serious condition.
We stopped to treat them and stabilize their condition, and all of a sudden a Red Alert siren began. Moments later there was a rocket strike near us and we felt the blast. Through it all, we continued the treatment and evacuated the three of them in serious condition.
Meanwhile, a volunteer driver joins us and we rendezvous with an MDA ambulance that transfers 5 casualties over to us, two of whom are in serious condition and three in moderate condition following a rocket strike on their house.
On route to the incident, another military vehicle meets up with me and transfers us two more casualties in serious and critical condition. I begin to treat them as I was taught in the paramedic course, remembering the protocols, drug dosages, stopping the bleeding, advanced treatment delivery etc. I am fighting for their life.
On route to the hospital one of the soldiers says to me, “we are cousins and you will help me, correct?” I answer him confidently, “Of course. We are one nation and we are all together.” We transferred them to the hospital while giving them the required medical care throughout the evacuation.
During the rest of the shift we scanned rocket strike and gunfire scenes, provided medical care, calmed anxiety victims, and helped civilians evacuate. While we treated the casualties I worried about my friends whom I sent to Tzochar station since I believed it would be quieter, but in retrospect I have become aware it was a real war scene and full of blood.
I finished my shift late. I came home for two hours and then returned to another shift.
More incidents and more events and more killed and more wounded. Just like that for days and days of struggling to save lives.”
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