"Instead of stinging nettle, myrtle will rise" (Isaiah 55:13)
 "Instead of evil, good will rise." (The Malbim's Interpretation)
Myrtle Rising
  • Blog
  • Comments Disabled
    • Privacy Policy
  • Aliyah
    • Mini-Intro
    • General Cultural Insights
    • School Tips
  • Kli Yakar Index
  • Most Popular
  • Contact

The Lag B'Omer Tragedies

30/4/2021

2 Comments

 
UPDATE 2/6/21: Thank you very much to the caring reader who pointed out there was actually no stampede & also cared enough to explain why it's so inappropriate to describe the catastrophe as a stampede.

This post was written very soon after the catastrophe with the information at hand (both from reports & from my sons) and also before eyewitness reports came in. My apologies for using disrespectful or inaccurate terms or reporting. Those have been changed.


Living in a charedi area of Eretz Yisrael always means the day of Lag B'Omer comes alive with music bursting from homes and cars as we gratefully leave that first part of the Omer behind—those weeks that forbid public music.

But this year, Lag B'Omer remains quiet.

I can't even hear the faintest strain of melody or the vaguest beat of bass tones.

And we all know why. 

The shocking tragedy actually started when we heard reports of a motorcycle-car collision between 2 frum drivers outside of Beitar Ilit, in which the young male motorcyclist died from his injuries.

That shocking tragedy Erev Lag B'Omer preceded the horrific event that occurred later on Lag B'Omer itself. 

I didn't understand at first what happened in Meron or how it happened. And the full details still aren't available.

At first, news outlets reported a stampede occurred because a balcony collapsed. Then the balcony became bleachers. Then they said nothing collapsed; the catastrophe occurred due to a closed in area with a ramp & stairs, which causes a downward momentum difficult to halt (in other words, there was no stampede either).

However, my teenage son's friend said that he was on the bleachers, which were shaking, and indeed, he said there was some kind of collapse. So I don't know.

But having lived in Eretz Yisrael for over half my life and having been in crowds here and knowing how these things work, I wondered out loud how such a deadly disaster could have occurred.

After all, despite copious propaganda to the opposite, frum Jews are actually very good at looking out for both themselves and others together.

We saw this during Rav Ovadia Yosef's funeral, which reached over a million participants, yet nary one death from crowding or trampling.

The police hadn't prepared for such a massive turnout, so it was mostly the people themselves who prevented any tragedies.

For instance, participants formed protective rings of space around parents with small children to prevent the children from being crowded, suffocated, or trampled.

The few who passed out or suffered medical problems were supported until a sea of helpful hands managed to pass a stretcher to them, and then people managed to move (without trampling others) or passed the person on the stretcher via the crowd to the waiting ambulances.

That's just one example.

So in Meron, I knew that people would shout back about other people having fallen or being squished, and that call would be repeated back until other end of the crowd.

But my son pointed out that music blasted from the speakers, preventing such shouts from being heard.

Oh. I'd forgotten about that part.

Yes, they cut out all the music as soon as they realized what was happening. But a lot of heart-breaking damage had occurred already.

And yes, one particularly large chassid managed to hold back the crowd to rescue someone from the ground.

Probably others also managed to save lives. 

​But the death toll still horrifies and shocks.

Knowing 2 sons had headed to Meron, I made the same phone calls everyone else was making at that time.

I got ahold of one immediately because he and his friend got stuck at a gas station halfway down Route 6.

This prevented them from being in Meron at the time of the disaster, baruch Hashem. 

They said that suddenly dozens of buses packed with people started filling up the parking lot. They saw people streaming off the buses, very emotional and in a state of disarray (like a boy missing a kippah and one shoe). 

That's when my son and his friend found out what happened.

But like a lot of others, I couldn't get through to my other son (who already arrived in Meron) because of the overloaded cell service.

​I only managed to reach him in Meron at 4 in the morning (with loudspeakers blasting names in the background: "To So-and-So—please call home!") to discover he hadn't been at the exact site of the tragedy, but he and his friends helped a couple of ambulances get up the hill. (Some of the ambulances were sliding or skidding; not clear why.) 

What a heartbreaking contrast to the story my other son heard while still stuck at the gas station.

A Zaka volunteer arrived at the gas station in a state of shock & wearing stained clothes. He plopped down to rest and his traumatic experience came pouring out to the people around him, saying something like:

"There I was zipping a body into a body bag in order to prevent bizayon hameit [desecration of the dead] when the front of his jacket started vibrating—his cell phone. I took out the cell phone, glanced at the screen, and saw the word Ima—Mother. What could I do? What was I supposed to do? Answer and tell her I'm right in the middle of declaring her son a fatality? What exactly was I supposed to do? What?"

No one had words for such an awful situation. Just everyone's hearts went out to him.

We still don't know all the details of exactly what happened.

In the car-motorcycle collision, we don't know which driver was at fault.

In Meron, people point fingers at the actions of the police (with good reason), but we still don't know exactly how and to what extent. (UPDATE: As more eyewitness reports pour in, it's increasingly looking like the police not only caused the entire disaster, but even made things worse. That's how it appears with the information available up until now.)

For the people in the crowd, they live with the horror that, against their will, they were part of the crush against their fellow Jews, something they desperately tried to avoid.

And we're still waiting to hear from the Gedolei HaDor on the issue.

In particular, I'm waiting to hear the words Rav Itamar Schwartz, whose insights and mussar always help so much.

Yet from whichever angle you look, there is an obvious bein-adam-l'chavero (person-to-person) message here—especially since it occurred during the Omer, which mourns the death of Rebbe Akiva's students in a plague resulting from a hairline deficiency in bein-adam-l'chavero.

Exactly what? Not sure. Like I said, still waiting to hear from the Sages who really know.

May all the ill & wounded of Am Yisrael please merit a complete refuah.

And may Hashem please bring the Geula with compassion & may we only hear good news.

2 Comments
Nechama
1/5/2021 21:38:34

I wish everyone would stop using “stampede”!
It’s so accusatory, like blaming the victims.

Reply
Myrtle Rising
2/5/2021 11:39:12

You are absolutely right.

Initially, I did not realize the term is not only disrespectful, but also inaccurate in this case.

I apologize & it has been changed in the post above.

Thank you, Nechama.

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Privacy Policy

    Picture
    Please note this is an affiliate link. Meaning, I get a small cut but at NO extra cost to you. If you use it, I'm grateful. If not, you still get a giant mitzvah connected to Eretz Yisrael.

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner


    Myrtle Rising

    I'm a middle-aged housewife and mother in Eretz Yisrael who likes to read and write a lot.


    Picture
    Sample Chapters

    Categories

    All
    Aliyah
    Anti Jewish Bigotry
    Anti-jewish-bigotry
    Astronomy
    Book Review
    Books
    Chagim/Holidays
    Chinuch
    Coronavirus
    Dictionaries
    Emuna
    Eretz Yisrael
    Erev Rav
    Gender
    Hitbodedut
    "If The Torah..."
    Jewish Astrology
    Kav Hayashar
    Kli Yakar
    Lashon Hara
    Love
    Me'am Loez
    Minchat Yehudah
    Mishlei/Proverbs
    Netivot Shalom
    Parenting
    Parsha
    Pele Yoetz
    Perek Shira
    Pesach
    Politics
    Prayer
    Purim
    Rav Avigdor Miller
    Rav Itamar Schwartz
    Rav L.Y. Bender
    Recipes
    "Regular" Jews
    Rosh Hashanah
    Society
    Sukkot
    Tammuz
    Technology
    Tehillim/Psalms
    Teshuvah
    The Lost Princess
    Tisha B'Av
    USA Scary Direction
    Women
    Yom Kippur

    Jewish Blogs

    Daf Yomi Review
    Derech Emet
    Going...Habayitah
    Halacha Q&A
    Hava haAharona
    Miriam Adahan
    My Perspective

    Shirat Devorah
    Tomer Devorah
    Toras Avigdor
    True Tzaddikim
    Tznius Blog

    Yeranen Yaakov
    Rabbi Ofer Erez (Hebrew lectures)

    Jewish Current Events

    Hamodia
    Sultan Knish
    Tomer Devorah
    Yeranen Yaakov

    Jewish Health

    People Smarts

    Archives

    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015

    RSS Feed

    Copyright Notice

    ©2015-2022 Myrtle Rising
    Excerpts and links may be used without express permission as long as a link is provided back to the appropriate Myrtle Rising page.

Home/Blog

Most Popular

Kli Yakar in English

Aliyah

Contact

Copyright © 2021
Photos used under Creative Commons from Brett Jordan, BAMCorp, Terrazzo, Abode of Chaos, Michele Dorsey Walfred, marklordphotography, M.Burak Erbaş, torbakhopper, jhritz, Rina Pitucci (Tilling 67), Svadilfari, kum111, Tim simpson1, FindYourSearch, Giorgio Galeotti, ChrisYunker, Jaykhuang, YourCastlesDecor, bluebirdsandteapots, Natalia Medd, Stefans02, Israel_photo_gallery, Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet, BradPerkins, zeevveez, dfarrell07, h.koppdelaney, Edgardo W. Olivera, nafrenkel88, zeevveez, mtchlra, Liz | populational, TraumaAndDissociation, thinboyfatter, garofalo.christina, skpy, Free Grunge Textures - www.freestock.ca, Nerru, Gregory "Slobirdr" Smith, trendingtopics, dolbinator1000, DonkeyHotey, zeevveez, erix!, zeevveez, h.koppdelaney, MAURO CATEB, kevin dooley, keepitsurreal, annikaleigh, bjornmeansbear, publicdomainphotography, Leonard J Matthews, Exile on Ontario St, Nicholas_T, marcoverch, planman, PhilWolff, j_lai, t.kunikuni, zeevveez, Ian W Scott, Brett Jordan, RonAlmog, Bob Linsdell, NASA Goddard Photo and Video, aaron_anderer, ** RCB **, Tony Webster, mypubliclands, AntonStetner, Zachi Evenor, MrJamesBaker, sammydavisdog, Frode Ramone, Wonder woman0731, wrachele, kennethkonica, Skall_Edit, Pleuntje, Rennett Stowe, *S A N D E E P*, symphony of love, AlexanderJonesi, Arya Ziai, ePublicist, Enokson, Tony Webster, Art4TheGlryOfGod, seaternity, Andrew Tarvin, zeevveez, Israel_photo_gallery, Iqbal Osman1, Matt From London, Tribes of the World, Eric Kilby, miracle design, RonAlmog, slgckgc, Kim Scarborough, DonkeyHotey, Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com, h.koppdelaney, gleonhard, Pedro Travassos, nociveglia, RonAlmog, Israel_photo_gallery, Septemia, Paulann_Egelhoff, Tatiana12, MAD Hippies Life, Neta Bartal, milesgehm, shooting brooklyn, RonAlmog, smilygrl, gospelportals, leighblackall, symensphotographie, zeevveez, Kyknoord, wotashot (taking a break), Tambako the Jaguar, bitmask, Arnie Sacknooson, mattymatt, Rob Swystun, zeevveez, Dun.can, Tim Patterson, timeflicks, garlandcannon, HRYMX, fred_v, Yair Aronshtam, zeevveez, Ron Cogswell, FindYourSearch, Israel_photo_gallery, Serendipity Diamonds, zeevveez, Steve Corey, Dominic's pics, leighklotz, Stefans02, dannyman, RonAlmog, Stephen O, RonAlmog, Tips For Travellers, Futurilla, anomalous4, Bob Linsdell, AndyMcLemore, symphony of love, andydr, sara~, Gamma Man, Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com, robef, European Southern Observatory, Brett Jordan, Johnny Silvercloud, Israel_photo_gallery, smkybear, --Sam--, Paulann_Egelhoff, Selena Sheridan, D'oh Boy, campbelj45ca, 19melissa68, entirelysubjective, Leimenide, dheera.net, Brett Jordan, HonestReporting.com, Iqbal Osman1, One Way Stock, Jake Waage, picto:graphic, Marcelo Alves, KAZVorpal, Sparkle Motion, Brett Jordan, Ambernectar 13, Howdy, I'm H. Michael Karshis, Steven DuBois, Cristian V., tortuga767, Jake Cvnningham, D'oh Boy, Eric Kilby, quinn.anya, Lenny K Photography, One Way Stock, Bird Eye, ell brown, Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com, Kevin M. Gill, lunar caustic, gerrybuckel, quinn.anya, Kaz Andrew, kodomut, kayugee, jintae kim's photography, Futurilla, terri_bateman, Patty Mooney, Amydeanne, Paulann_Egelhoff, Mulling it Over, Ungry Young Man, Ruth and Dave, yangouyang374, symphony of love, kennethkonica, young@art, Brett Jordan, slgckgc, Celestine Chua, rkimpeljr, Kristoffer Trolle, TooFarNorth, D'oh Boy, Grace to You, LittleStuff.me, Kevin M. Gill, philozopher, traveltipy.com, Alan Cleaver, crazyoctopus, d_vdm, tonynetone, penjelly, TheToch, JohnE777, hello-julie, DaveBleasdale, Michael Candelori Photography, andessurvivor, slgckgc, byzantiumbooks, sasha diamanti