As rockets continue to fall on Israel's southern communities, emergency responders are being forced to make decisions no medical professional should have to make.
"Yesterday, I had three critical cases at once," says a Zaka360 volunteer dispatcher, who prefers to remain anonymous. "An elderly man having a heart attack, a pregnant woman in distress during a rocket siren, and a child with severe trauma. We had to choose who would get the ambulance first - there's no right answer to that kind of choice."
This is the daily reality for ZAKA360's 450 volunteers serving Israel's southern region. With emergency transport often taking up to 40 minutes to arrive from central Israel, every call becomes a desperate calculation of time and urgency.
"Last week, a woman gave birth in a bomb shelter while waiting for an ambulance that was responding to another emergency. We were there with her, but without proper medical transport, without the right equipment - these are moments that haunt us."
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The organization has launched an emergency campaign to purchase a dedicated ambulance for the southern region. At $220,000, ZAKA360 says it's an investment that will eliminate the need for these impossible choices.
"Every day, we play a tragic game of priorities. When you're timing emergency responses against the 15-second warning of incoming rockets, waiting 40 minutes for an ambulance isn't just inconvenient - it's the difference between life and death."
To support ZAKA360's emergency ambulance campaign and bring emergency care within reach of every family in Israel's South, click here.
Editor's Note: The emergency scenarios described in this article represent composite accounts based on actual situations in Southern Israel. Details have been modified to protect confidentiality while accurately portraying the challenges faced by emergency responders in the region.
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