Volunteers from the Israel Police’s “Galilee-Carmel" rescue unit completed a complex rescue operation late Tuesday night in Nahal Amud.
A family of six - a grandmother and five grandchildren aged 10 to 15 from Tzfat (Safed) - lost their way while attempting to walk to the Lag Ba'omer celebration in Meron. The group became trapped on a dangerous cliff on the western escarpment of the streambed, unable to continue.
The incident began in the early evening hours when the grandmother contacted police and reported that the family was stranded in the field. They had attempted to travel from Tzfat to Meron through difficult terrain; rain falling in the area made the slopes especially slippery and dangerous.
After the call was received, a command post was established at the Kfar Shamai parking lot, and search teams began scans while using sirens to establish voice contact.
A United Hatzalah drone located the family deep within the cliff area and illuminated the site for rescuers, who dropped a flashlight and thermal blankets from the air. Due to the difficult topography, a specialized rope rescue team was deployed and built a rope system to extract the family members one by one from the ravine.
The unit’s paramedic examined the family at the end of the rescue, and they were sent home in good condition.
Tuesday marked the second consecutive day that the unit's volunteers operated in the Meron area, after they rescued worshippers and hikers in the area on Monday as well. Unit officials warned that the combination of difficult terrain and unstable weather conditions could easily end in disaster.