Damages in safed following rocket hit
(Video: Faran Raz)
Israel’s northern city of Safed felt Hezbollah’s most severe rocket salvos on Wednesday since the war began on October 7 and amid increased fighting across the northern border against the terror group. One home suffered a direct hit while its owners were abroad and avoided severe injury.
Most homes in the city lack safe rooms or shelters because they were built before regulations demanded them, and many were also built using lightweight construction materials such as drywall. Many of these homes were part of assisted living housing complexes, where elderly people and new immigrants reside.
The distance to public shelters, combined with advanced age, makes it impossible for many of the residents to reach a safe place in the 30 seconds between when sirens warn of fire and rockets arrive. The city was now examining the possibility of evacuating residents to a safer location.
Unfortunately, we're being deserted," Yitav Haddad, who lives near the home that took a direct hit said. "We heard a huge explosion and quickly realized it hit the neighborhood, very close to us. The government and the municipality must wake up fast because tragedies will happen. We're talking about people's lives."
"It was insane, the hardest volley we've experienced, Roman, another Safed resident, said. "Some 80% of homes in the neighborhood aren't protected and that's a big fear here. It's a miracle no one was injured."
According to Safed Mayor Yossi Kakon, over 200 rockets targeted his city. “Unfortunately, Safed also has a significant lack of shelters.”
“Generally, no evacuations are taking place in the city, but there are isolated cases where we may examine complex situations involving patients, the elderly and specific individuals. The decision to evacuate residents, are made by the Home Front Command in coordination with the municipality,” he said.
Entire neighborhoods in the Druze cities of Daliyat al-Karmel and Isfiya, which have recently come within range of rockets from Lebanon, lack safe rooms or public shelters, leaving their residents feeling helpless in the face of this new threat.
Parts of an intercepted rocket fell near the home of Suad Abu Rokhen living in Isfiya. Having recently undergone surgery, she can’t leave her unprotected home. "When I hear the siren, I do nothing. I just wait for it to pass and pray that we don't get hit," she said.
"According to the Civil Protection Law, the responsibility for building private safe rooms falls on the property owner, while the responsibility for public protection falls on municipalities. The Home Front Command is working in collaboration with various government ministries and local authorities to advance the permitting process for building various protection solutions,” The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said in a statement.