United Hatzalah Volunteer Races To Save Lives – On The Way To His Own Wedding

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Netanel Assa is a dedicated United Hatzalah volunteer who is willing to leave everything and race to save lives. Everything? Even his own wedding apparently, which he was on his way to when he received an urgent alert about a toddler choking nearby.

Netanel, dressed in his wedding suit and riding to his wedding, donned his United Hatzalah jacket and rushed to the scene as first responder. Seeing the toddler suffering difficulty breathing, Netanel expertly banged her back until the food item she had swallowed was dislodged and she was able to continue breathing normally. At this point other United Hatzalah volunteers took over and Netanel left for his wedding, arriving later than he had expected.

In a radio interview, Netanel was asked if his kallah had known about the incident. He said that she did not know but would not have been surprised as she is well aware of the devotion of the volunteers to their lifesaving missions, since she works as a nurse and has seen herself the willingness of volunteers to save lives in all situations.

The child was recovering and has been released from hospital, but Netanel asked listeners to pray for another United Hatzalah volunteer who had been hit by a bus Tuesday evening while on a lifesaving mission and is in very serious condition. The volunteer’s name is Elchanan Eliyahu Ben Rachel.