The wildfires that ravaged large areas of Mount Carmel forest, killing 41 people and damaging hundreds of homes in the Northern Israel in early December, were halted with the help of local and international emergency teams. The intensive coordination efforts of USAID West Bank and Gaza with the Government of Israel enabled the rapid mobilization of U.S. Government assistance to combat the forest fires.
Through communications with the Israeli Government, USAID West Bank and Gaza identified the emergency needs and immediately mobilized the USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) which arrived to Haifa, Israel, on December 5, to work alongside the Israeli firefighters and offer technical expertise. The United States also flew nearly 70 metric tons (MT) of fire suppressant and 3,800 gallons of fire retardant concentrate to Israel.
In addition to assistance from the U.S. and Europe, Israel received help from its Arab neighbors, Jordan and Egypt, as well as the Palestinian Authority who sent three fire engines and firefighters to suppress the fires together with their Israeli counterparts. Responding to this conciliatory gesture, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his appreciation and thanks to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Helping Israel suppress its largest forest fire ever, USAID also played a role in passing information between different parties and providing emergency advice.
The fires have subsided, but the United States is ready to provide additional assistance to support the Government of Israel if needed.
