Beirut: when israel Buildings bombed outside the southern Lebanese city of Sidon, Mohammed donation of blood And his team ended up in an emergency situation the likes of which they had never seen before. About a dozen apartments collapsed on a hill they had never noticed, burying more than 100 people. Even after working for 17 years with the civil defense forces of one of the world’s most war-torn countries, Arkadan was shocked by the destruction. By Monday afternoon – nearly 24 hours after the bombing – his team had recovered more than 40 bodies – including children. From the wreckage, with 60 survivors.
Arkadan, 38, said the children’s bodies broke his heart, but the inability of his team of more than 30 first responders to help hurt him more. Fire engines and ambulances have not been replaced for years. Rescue equipment and tools are in short supply. His team has to buy its uniforms from pocket.
An economic crisis that began in 2019 and culminated in a massive port explosion in 2020 lebanon Struggles to provide basic services like electricity and medical care. Political divisions have left the country of 6 million without a president or a functioning government for more than two years, deepening a national sense of abandonment even among those on whom people depend in emergencies.
“We have zero capabilities, zero logistics,” Arkadan said. “We have no gloves, no personal protective gear.” War has thrown Lebanon into chaos again
Israel’s air campaign against has intensified Hezbollah The country has been shaken. More than 1,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since September 17, according to the Health Ministry, about a quarter of whom are women and children. Millions of people have fled their homes and are sleeping on beaches and streets.
World Health Organization Said that more than 30 primary health care centers around the affected areas of Lebanon have been closed. On Tuesday, Israel said it had launched a limited ground campaign against Hezbollah and warned people to evacuate several southern communities, threatening to escalate further tensions.
“Lebanon is facing multiple crises that have strained the country’s ability to cope,” said Imran Riza, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Lebanon. He said the United Nations has allocated $24 million in emergency funds for people affected by the fighting.
Exhausted medical staff are struggling to cope with the daily influx of new patients. Under government emergency plans, hospitals and medical workers have halted non-essential operations.
Government shelters are full
in the southern province of exhaustMany doctors have fled along with the residents. In Nabatiyah, southern Lebanon’s largest province, first responders say they are working around the clock to reach hundreds of people wounded in bombings that have hit dozens of villages and towns over the past week, often in a single day. Are there.
After the bombing in Sidon, about 250 first responders joined the team in Arakdan, which also included a special search and rescue unit from Beirut, about 45 kilometers (28 mi) to the north. His team did not have the modern equipment needed to rescue people from a disaster.
“We used traditional tools like scissors, cables and shovels,” Arkadan said. “Anyone here?” Rescue workers screamed through piles of debris, searching for survivors buried deep underground. An excavator slowly removed debris to avoid moving the piles of bricks and damaged steel.
Many took refuge in the ancient city of Tyre, 20 kilometers (12 mi) north of the border with Israel, thinking they would likely escape the bombardment. More than 8,000 people arrived, said Hassan Dabouk, head of its disaster management unit.
There were no pre-arranged supplies like food parcels, hygiene kits and mattresses, and now carrying trucks is fraught with danger, he said. Due to the bombing, farmers have been denied access to their land and the municipality is struggling to pay salaries.
The human situation is dire
Meanwhile, there is a pile of garbage on the roads. The number of municipal employees has reduced from 160 to 10. “The humanitarian situation is catastrophic,” Dubuc said.
wisam ghazalA health ministry official in Tyre said one hospital had only five doctors left out of 35. He said eight doctors were killed in Tire province over two days, including three from a medical organization linked to Hezbollah.
Over the weekend, the city itself became the epicenter of attacks. Israeli warplanes attacked the port city near its famous ruins, its beaches and residential and commercial areas, forcing thousands of residents to flee. At least 15 civilians were killed on Saturday and Sunday, including two municipal workers, a soldier and several children, all but one from two families.
It took rescue workers two days to find the debris of a house in the Kharb neighborhood in the city center, where a bomb had killed nine members of the al-Samra family. Six premature babies were flown to Beirut in incubators across the city. The city’s only doctor, who cared for him, couldn’t get between hospitals hit by fire, Ghazal said.
One of the four hospitals in the district closed after it was damaged by the strike, which affected its power supply and damaged the operation room. Windows were broken in two other hospitals. At present, the number of dead people is more than the number of injured in the city hospitals. “But you don’t know what will happen when the intensity of the attacks increases. We will definitely need more.”
make do with what they have
Hossein Fakih, head of civil defense in Nabatieh province, said that “We are working in very difficult and serious conditions because the attacks are random. We have no protection. We have no shields, no helmets, and no There is no spare hose. The latest vehicle is 25 years old. Despite all this, we are still working.”
At least three of his firefighting team were killed in early September. Ten have been injured since then. Six of the 45 vehicles were affected and are now out of service. Fakih said he was limiting his team’s search and rescue operations to residential areas, keeping them away from forests or open areas where they used to fight fires.
Fakih said, “These days, there is something difficult every day. Body parts are everywhere, children, civilians and bodies in the debris.” Still, he said, he considers his job a safety net for people. “We serve the people and we will make do with what we have.”
