Israelis rescue earthquake survivor in Haiti

Tax Authority worker found by Home Front Command team 
after 120 hours under rubble. Residents shout 'we love Israel' 
as man is removed on stretcher, one of rescuers says

by Noam Barkan
January 17, 2010
http://www.ynetnews.com

Port-Au-Prince - The Israeli delegation to Haiti has managed 
to rescue a survivor trapped under the rubble, four days 
after a strong earthquake rocked the country.

The Home Front Command team was called Saturday evening 
to rescue a man from the Tax Authority building in the capital 
Port-au-Prince. After more than seven hours, the force 
managed to reach the survivor, who had spent 120 hours 
under the rubble. 

The survivor was Gilles, 58, a Tax Authority worker who sent 
a text message with a sign of life from his cellular phone. 
The rescue forces dispatched to the area found equipment 
believed to be left behind by another rescue team, 
which left after failing to locate the survivor.
 
The Israeli team members were forced to break down a 
wall separating them from Gilles, but still found it difficult 
to reach him as iron pipes had collapsed in the area 
and pinned him to the floor, while concrete logs pressed 
the lower part of his body.

Major Zohar Moshe, the rescue force's commander, 
explained that the team began attending to the survivor 
before he was completely removed from under the rubble. 
"The moment we managed to break the wall, we began 
treating him while continuing the rescue efforts," 
he said. After many efforts, the rescuers managed to 
attach an infusion to his body.

Amit Even Paz, one of the rescuers, managed to reach 
Gilles, talk to him and remove all the rubble covering him.
 
"We spoke to him all the time, told him not to despair. 
Towards the end he became drowsy, mumbling nonsense. 
We vowed to get him out of there alive," said Lieutenant 
Ilan Barel, a member of the Israeli delegation.
 
"Gilles has a 20-year-old daughter and a wife. They both 
live in Connecticut and still think he is under the rubble. 
When he was removed on a stretcher, exhausted and 
covered with dust, the residents outside clapped their 
hands and shouted, 'We love Israel,'" added Major 
Moshe.

The stench in the rescue site is unbearable, as there 
are many bodies buried under the rubble. Before 
arriving at the Tax Authority building, the Home Front 
Command team searched for survivors in a nearby 
factory and hotel, but to no avail.

The field hospital set up in no time by the Israeli 
delegation is working in full speed. "We have already 
conducted two operations. These are life-saving 
procedures," said Colonel Itzik Kreis, the field 
hospital's commander, in a phone call from Haiti.
 
According to Colonel Kreis, the hospital was set up 
within eight hours, instead of 20 as planned. 
In its first fours hours, the team treated 55 people, 
some of whom have already been released.
 
A delegation of five Magen David Adom paramedics 
will travel to Haiti on Sunday and join the Norwegian 
Red Cross team. The MDA crew is expected to stay 
in the country for three weeks, and additional experts 
will be sent out later on.