Horror in Israel: Two Bodies Recovered, Search Continues for Family Trapped in Rubbl
"Elite 'Lehava' rescue units use cellular tracking to locate a family and their caregiver buried under the ruins of a Shimshon Street apartment building, as the death toll rises to two and two others remain missing."
A heavy cloud of grief hangs over the city of Haifa this Monday morning as rescue officials confirmed that two out of four individuals trapped under a collapsed residential building have been found dead.
The building, located on Shimshon Street, suffered a direct hit from an Iranian missile during the overnight hours. Despite early warnings that allowed some residents to seek shelter, the force of the impact brought the structure down on a family and their caregiver.
The Victims and the Missing
The search-and-rescue operation, which has entered its second day, was focused on a specific pocket of rubble where a couple, their son, and a foreign worker were known to be at the time of the strike.
Two bodies were recovered after a grueling effort by the IDF Home Front Command and the "Lehava" elite rescue unit.
An 82-year-old man was pulled from the wreckage in serious condition and rushed to Rambam Medical Center. His wife is in light-to-moderate condition. Six additional residents, including a baby, were treated for light injuries at Bnei Zion Medical Center.
Rescue efforts were hampered by hazardous conditions. Authorities revealed that the Iranian missile likely did not explode upon impact. While this may have prevented a larger fire, it has left a "live" and unstable warhead buried deep within the ruins of the residential complex.
Lieutenant Colonel (Res.) Yair Pinto, an operations officer for the National Rescue Unit, told Walla News that crews are using advanced cellular tracking to pinpoint the exact location of the remaining missing persons.
"We are working through the voids created by the collapse," Pinto said. "It is a surgical operation. The main effort remains life-saving, even under these conditions."
Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav and President Isaac Herzog have been in constant communication as the city opens emergency welfare centers for the dozens of residents displaced by the strike.
"This is a difficult and complex event in the heart of a residential neighborhood," Mayor Yahav stated. "Our goal is to stabilize the scene and provide a human response to the families who have lost everything."