At least five people were killed and dozens were injured after multiple private vehicles collided and a bus carrying children turned over on Route 89 in northern Israel on Wednesday afternoon.
Four of the victims were a mother and her three children from the northern town of Maalot who were traveling in a taxi with the family's father. Their names are Moran Ben Eli (35), Dekel Ben Eli (15), Liam Ben Eli (11) and Anael Ben Eli (5). The father Reuven Ben Eli, who was driving the cab, was seriously injured in the crash and was taken to Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa for treatment.
Shortly afterward, emergency services salvaged the body of a fifth victim — 76-year-old Asher Basson from Kiryat Yam who was driving the bus that turned over in the crash.
According to first responders at the scene, 48 people were being treated, some in serious condition, and taken to various hospitals in northern Israel.
The military deployed Air Force helicopters of the Airborne Combat Rescue And Evacuation Unit 669 to aid in the rescue efforts.
Israel Police said the road was blocked for traffic in both directions and traffic officers were on the scene and directing traffic. Drivers are asked to take alternative routes, such as Route 899.
The Bnei Akiva youth movement confirmed that the bus involved in the fatal car accident was taking campers back home from a Sukkot trip.
The injured participants were evacuated to Ziv Hospital in Safed and the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya, the group says.
According to data from the National Road Safety Authority, 270 Israelis have been killed in car accidents since the beginning of 2021 — including Wednesday's crash — of which 92 were private car passengers. During the same period in 2020, 233 people were killed, including 80 private vehicle passengers.
First published: 17:53, 09.29.21