Laborers ignored rocket alert
Thai workers had ample warning ahead of lethal Qassam attack; some chose to ignore it
Thai workers employed on the Gaza border ignored Thursday's rocket alert ahead of a Qassam strike that killed one of them, officials say.
About 50 of the dozens of migrant laborers employed at Moshav Netiv Ha'asara are being treated for shock by social workers following the attack that killed one Tgreenhouse worker earlier in the day.
A central question repeatedly asked has been why so many of the workers did not run for cover upon hearing the Color Red alert, some seconds before the rocket fell, even though they knew the danger and had been briefed about what to do in such a situation.
Coast Regional Council head Yair Farjun noted that the workers had plenty of time to run for cover at a nearby shelter, as at least two minutes passed between the warning and the fall of the Qassam rocket.
The workers themselves struggled to explain their behavior, and admitted they knew the drill. The community's chief security officer said to Ynet that some chose to stay in the greenhouse because it had been relatively quiet in recent weeks.
"This is the most well-prepared area in the greenhouses, and it seems the workers simply did not take cover," said Shayke Shaked, owner of greenhouses nearby, whose house has been damaged in the past by mortar shells.
IDF soldiers among the greenhouses (Photo: AFP)
"It's just bad luck," he said. "Unfortunately, contrary to what many people think, it is not so quiet here – mortar shells and Qassams still fall. The previous couple, (former Prime Minister Ehud) Olmert and (Defense Minister Ehud) Barak managed to create some quiet here, which (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and Barak just aren't managing. They waited for blood to be spilled, and now someone's been killed."
Following the incident, the migrant laborers were taken away from the scene in a bus. Most were shocked and are being treated. Translators have also been brought to assist.
As a result, farmers fear the loss of their workforce. In the past, the Thai government forbade its nationals from working in risk areas, and only after great effort were they permitted to work in the region.
