FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sarit Schonbrun
JNF Communications Manager
212-879-9305 ext. 222
sschonbrun@jnf.org
JNF-KKL Firefighters Battle Fierce Blazes in Northern Israel
Fires Caused by Rockets Claim Thousands of Acres of Forests
July 31, 2006 -- New York, NY -- Since the start of the conflict in Israel, approximately 2,500 acres of grazing land and 1,500 acres of forests have gone up in flames, destroying over half a million trees and reducing the green landscape of northern Israel to a scorched wasteland.
JNF-KKL firefighters douse smoldering forests.
Jewish National Fund - Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael firefighters have been working around the clock to battle the fires ravaging the northern countryside, risking their lives as Katyusha rockets fall around them.
Through JNF's Operation Security Blanket, over $2,260,000 has been raised to purchase safety equipment and fire trucks to support firefighters and emergency response personnel. Donations are also being used to send children living in areas under rocket attack to JNF-KKL summer camps in central Israel as well as to build security bypass roads along the Gaza border.
"There were people I didn't expect to see here," said Andy Michelson, Director of the American Desk at KKL, who volunteered with JNF-KKL firefighters last week. "JNF-KKL foresters from all over the country had come to the north to fight these fires. Nobody told them to come. In fact, they were told not to come -- it's too dangerous -- but come they did, with their equipment, their experience and their energy.
"I continued to watch the teams arrive. Groups of men, tired, dirty, smelling of smoke, but mostly tired. As they walked from their vehicles towards the tent I saw the 'fresh' crews ready to replace their colleagues. There were smiles, words of encouragement, and a camaraderie that Israelis know all too well."
Destroyed trees in Birya Forest.
"Just before we left," said Michelson, "I was introduced to Yossi Biton, a second generation JNF-KKL forest ranger. His father had planted the Birya Forest in the early 1950's and he was battling to save his father's work, literally watching it go up in smoke."
Fire consumes a northern forest.
In addition to the usual dangers of battling fires, JNF-KKL firefighters must now contend with un-detonated explosives and the threat of constant rocket attacks.
"As we were driving through the Birya Forest, looking at the devastation that the fires had caused, we heard the air raid siren signaling that another attack was under way," said Michelson. "Wearing our vests and helmets, we crouched down by the side of our vehicle and waited. The siren usually sounds between 30 to 60 seconds before the missiles impact, so we just looked at each other. What does one say as one waits to see or hear an incoming missile?
"The missile fell on the next hill. The siren stopped, and already we began to see the smoke. A fire had started. The forests are dry, we are in the middle of summer and it takes only a match to set off a fire."
A fire truck purchased by a JNF donor.A forest is sprayed with fire-retardant chemicals.A kit of personal safety equipment.
Donations to Operation Security Blanket have been used to purchase fire trucks, vital safety equipment including shrapnel-proof flexible vests and ceramic helmets, and a special fire-retardant chemical that slows the spread of fires and prevents trees from releasing flammable gases that increase fire intensity.
"Our last visit for the day was the Rosh Pina Airport," said Michelson. "It is from there that the planes depart with the 'red slush,' a chemical imported from Europe that, when sprayed on a forest, sticks to trees, grass, and land, stopping them from burning. We had seen their work earlier: fires stopped in their tracks, a red film covering everything-- trees, roads, cars, people."
To donate to Operation Security Blanket, visit http://www.jnf.org/ or call 888-JNF-0099.
Photos available as high-resolution jpegs upon request.
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Jewish National Fund is a non-profit organization founded in 1901 to serve as caretaker of the land of Israel, on behalf of its owners-Jewish people everywhere. Over the past century, JNF has planted over 240 million trees, built over 180 reservoirs and dams, developed over 250,000 acres of land, created more than 1,000 parks, provided the infrastructure for 1,000 communities and educated students around the world about Israel and the environment. Today, JNF is putting its century of experience to work with the Blueprint Negev initiative, supporting Israel's newest generation of pioneers in developing the Negev Desert, Israel's last frontier. For more information on JNF or to plant trees in Israel, call 1-800-542-TREE (8733) or visit http://www.jnf.org/. To contact your local office, please call 888-JNF-0099 or visit http://www.jnf.org/.
