Posted on 12/03/2010 9:38:49 PM PST by ErnstStavroBlofeld
Israel was caught flat-footed by the forest blaze now raging for a second day through the tinder-dry Carmel hills above the Mediterranean port of Haifa, because it has no water-bombers.
The death of 41 people in the flames on Thursday shocked the country. Some 15,000 Israelis had to be evacuated from their homes as the flames swept down on them unchecked. The inadequacy of the response has been openly admitted.
"Israel has never prepared itself in any form for such a need," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. "It was never taken into account."
He told reporters: "We have to stop the fire. It can only be done with the aircraft, we don't have any other means...We need to bring in more planes."
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
The problem in Israel they know of these short-comings but nothing is done to fix them until a disaster strikes.
A rich country like Israel can certainly afford a fleet of fire-fighting aircraft. Why was money never set aside for them?
“Suspicions of arson persisted on Day Two of the blaze as it rampaged through the Carmel Forest near Haifa, Israel’s third-largest city. Police said small brush fires that broke out Friday appeared to have been deliberately set...”http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101203/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_fire
There are a hundred things the US, also a rich country, knows of or knew of in advance, yet nothing was done and disasters of varying degree were suffered. Indeed, I would posit that the US is less prepared than Israel on many of these things.
If we were to rank those threats or perils on a hierarchical scale, I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that Israel faces threats far greater in importance and urgency than this type of fire.
(My) simple answer: Priorities, and the perceived price of life in each country. The 40 people lost in this fire are a rountine happenstance for deaths in an annual Hajj in Saudi Arabia or 1/5th of an Indian ferry disaster.
True... but Israel’s Fire Service has for decades has been undermanned, underequipped and just not capable to deal with the kind of domestic threats the country has had to face.
But all that will change and its going to lead Israelis to tackle the problem head on so it can deal with it on its own in the future.
Is Israel rich?
Israel has a First World economy and the capability to have a well-equipped Fire Service.
It just has never received the manpower and equipment that it needs to do its job properly because other priorities always seemed somehow more important.
The only way to catch people’s attention was for a disaster to happen. It came at an opportune time.
Well...you know and I know that the Israelis are generally very fast learners. Frankly, I had no particular idea that Israel had much need for such gear & personnel in its countryside. My bad.
This fire is apparently still going on, with serious gusto, right now.
Unfortunately, you and I also know it will now become another method of Islamist attack. It’s been speculated that this fire was deliberately set. I am sure it will become popular, because it would seem likely that in order to get water to such a fire, the Israelis would have to use saltwater. Not good for forest or arable land.
Yup. The Fire Service needs its own ministry and a centralized fire service should be created for the entire country. It will be politically viable if it has an active advocate in the Cabinet or its going to be the eternal stepchild of the public services in Israel.
Quite simply, the country has to spend a lot of money hiring more firefighters and upgrading their training and equipment. There is simply no choice. Prevention is less expensive in the long run than the cure.
Agreed. I just hope they don’t build a huge beauracratic infrastructure with a new Minister for Fire Affairs with 4,000 secretaries, 300 VPs, 100 sub-administrators and a Minister who knows absolutely nothing about the profession. Instead, billions should be pumped into getting men/women on the ground and sufficient stores of materials for the day when the Galilee Arabs REALLY go bonkers...
Arson is the greatest threat Israel faces... if the country is overextended as a result of one fire burning nearest its third largest city, imagine the impact of having to fight several fires all over the country! There is some relief in sight... cooler temperatures and some much needed rain will arrive Sunday, which should make the firefighters job a lot easier.
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