Long night under threat of fire

Our dear village just went through a long and nerve-racking night, as a wave of wild fires broke out in the nearby woods.

It was the eve of Lag Ba’Omer (a Jewish festival on which bonfires are traditionally lit) and in WAS-NS we had planned a double celebration, to eat together a communal Ramadan Iftar meal and then to sit around a bonfire with the children.

However, the entire country is broiling under an extreme heatwave. In view of the obvious danger, the authorities appealed to the public with clear instructions to cancel all bonfires.

We canceled our bonfire, but unfortunately others did not do likewise and came, as they often do on this holiday, to light bonfires in the surrounding forest. Wildfires broke out to our west and south and quickly spread out of control. We were on alert all night and ready for quick evacuation. In neighboring Kibbutz Harel, there was a complete evacuation and twenty houses were burned down or damaged. Among the buildings to suffer in the blaze were those of their educational institutions, which will have to to be closed for the coming period. We have offered to host the 80 children in their kindergarten until they are able to restore their’s, and it looks like they might take us up on the offer.

Once again we felt that our life’s work was in real danger from a natural disaster.

During the fire, we were concerned for our neighbors at the Latrun monastery and the guests in our hotel. Despite the difficulty, we felt like one family charged with caring for all of our members. The sense of solidarity and brotherhood in the air was stronger than the smell of fires and smoke.

We just hope that the rest of the summer will pass peacefully.