A major disaster was narrowly averted in Samaria on Shabbat after a massive fire tore through the community of Havat Gilad, causing unprecedented destruction. The flames burned deep into the settlement's row of homes, consuming thirteen residential houses along with a garage and a woodshed. Facing an immediate danger to life, security forces rapidly evacuated all of the community's residents from their homes.
Two firefighters were injured during the prolonged battle against the blaze, one moderately and one lightly, and both were evacuated for further medical treatment at the hospital. A local resident who was evacuated was also lightly hurt after fainting during the incident. Property damage was severe, with one fire truck completely destroyed by the flames and another armored firefighting vehicle sustaining serious damage from the intense heat at the scene.
The dramatic event began in the early afternoon when a fire broke out near Mitzpe Yishai in the community of Kedumim. Firefighters from the Samaria station were dispatched to the scene and managed to stop the fire's advance at the first line of homes in Kedumim, preventing casualties and property damage there. However, harsh weather conditions and strong winds in the area drove the fire front rapidly toward the nearby community of Havat Gilad. The flames quickly jumped over natural barriers, spread across wide open areas, and penetrated directly into the community, consuming everything in their path.
At the height of the event, a large-scale mobilization of forces from across the country was activated. Forty-five firefighting and rescue teams, assisted by eight firefighting aircraft from the Elad aerial firefighting squadron and a contracted helicopter, worked for hours in the field trying to contain the fire's spread. IDF forces from the Samaria Brigade joined the effort, actively assisting in evacuating residents from their homes, providing initial medical treatment to the injured in the field, and operating military water tankers to reinforce the water supply for the numerous firefighting teams. Fire and Rescue Commissioner Eyal Caspi arrived personally at the scene in Samaria to closely oversee the forces' activity and manage the operation together with district commanders.
In a joint statement issued by police, Fire and Rescue Services, and the IDF Spokesperson's Unit, officials said firefighters were continuing extensive firefighting operations at Havat Gilad, with 41 firefighting and rescue teams working to contain the remaining points of fire, prevent it from reigniting, and achieve full control. Police forces, including the aerial unit's helicopter and the district drone unit, were working to secure the area and maintain public order. Police from the Shai District closed major intersections in the area, including the Jit, Kedumim, and Yitzhar junctions, along with Route 55, in order to keep the roads clear for emergency vehicles.
A special joint investigative team has been established to determine the precise circumstances behind the fire's outbreak. The team includes experienced fire investigators from the Fire and Rescue Service's Judea and Samaria district, police officers from the Shai District, and security officials from Central Command and the Judea and Samaria Division. There is heavy suspicion that the fire was a case of deliberate arson carried out with a nationalist motive, which officials say would help explain the speed with which the separate fire centers developed in the area.
Alongside the major drama in Samaria, firefighters also had to contend with a series of significant fires in the Northern District over Shabbat. Crews operated at three main fire centers: near Shimshit in the Jezreel Valley, where 12 firefighting teams and four aircraft stopped the fire's spread toward a first line of homes that had been temporarily evacuated; in Kfar Vradim, where 11 firefighting teams gained control over an extensive open-area fire; and on Mount Tabor, where five teams worked to extinguish fire centers near the community of Shibli. Northern District commander Yair Elkayam confirmed in the evening that full control had been achieved over all of the incidents in the north, though he noted that firefighting forces in the area remain on high alert in case new fire centers develop or additional assistance is needed for their colleagues in the embattled Samaria sector.
