“This is maybe the biggest fire in the last few years in the Jerusalem hills,” said the Jerusalem District Fire Commander, Nissim Toito.
According to Public Security Minister Omer Bar Lev, there are three people from the hospital missing, but this may be due to a counting error, and the matter is under investigation.
Itzik Shmuli, a former government minister who was among the evacuated people, took to Twitter to share his experience, talking about the things you take with when you have five minutes to pack up the most important things. “It’s at a horrifying moment like this, when a great fire is threatening to destroy and burn the center of your life that you learn to appreciate all the more and hold tight to what you have managed to pack in five minutes: your partner and two wonderful children, three cats and some emotional souvenirs from an entire life,” he wrote.
“Thank you to our firefighters who have been fighting this fire for a few hours, may we get through this safely,” he added.
דווקא ברגע כזה מצמרר שאש אדירה מאיימת לכלות ולשרוף את מרכז חייך שנותר מאחור אתה לומד להעריך עוד יותר ולחבק חזק את מה שהצלחת לארוז בחמש דקות: בן זוג ושני ילדים מדהימים, שלושה חתולים ומזכרות מרגשות מחיים שלמים.
תודה לכבאים שלנו שנאבקים כאן כבר כמה שעות, שנעבור את זה בשלום.. pic.twitter.com/LojfOqxNrp— איציק שמולי (@ishmuli) August 15, 2021
The spread of the fire in the direction of Beit Meir, Shoresh and Shoeva was halted, but the fire continued to spread toward Tzuba, Ein Kuba, Ein Rafa and Ye’arim.
Three people were treated for smoke inhalation but were not hospitalized.
Twelve firefighting planes were working in an attempt to stop the spread together with firefighters on the ground.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett cut short a Security Cabinet meeting for consultations on the wildfires in the Jerusalem Hills.
Following the consultations, he called a meeting with Defense Minister Benny Gantz, Public Security Minister Omer Bar Lev, Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked, the chief of police and of fire and rescue services, and others.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz ordered IDF to assist with the efforts to extinguish the fire.