A young woman in advanced pregnancy died Wednesday following a head-on car crash in Ashdod, after doctors performed an emergency cesarean section in a desperate effort to save both her life and her baby's.
The collision occurred on Derech Lachish in Ashdod between two vehicles, according to Magen David Adom. Emergency crews who arrived at the scene described a severe impact, with significant front-end damage to both cars. Israel Meir Gian, a motorcycle-unit MDA paramedic, described finding a woman of about 30 with an altered level of consciousness and multiple injuries throughout her body. Four additional passengers from the vehicles were found walking at the scene and sustained light injuries.
The woman was evacuated in critical condition with multisystem trauma to Assuta Ashdod public hospital, where trauma, emergency room, delivery room, and neonatal intensive care teams were mobilized simultaneously in an effort to save both mother and baby.
As the woman's condition continued to deteriorate during treatment, doctors made the decision to perform an emergency cesarean section. The premature baby was delivered and immediately underwent resuscitation before being transferred within minutes to continued care in the neonatal intensive care unit. The baby's condition remains serious.
Despite prolonged efforts by medical teams to save the young mother's life, doctors were ultimately forced to pronounce her dead. A hospital spokesperson said in a statement, "We share in the family's profound grief in this difficult hour."
Israel Police said it has opened an investigation into the circumstances of the fatal crash, which occurred near the Ashdod port area and involved two vehicles. Officers from the Ashdod station and traffic accident investigators from the Lachish district are at the scene and continuing to investigate.
The crash is the latest in a series of serious road accidents that have claimed lives in Ashdod in recent months.
