The name of the yeshiva bochur who tragically drowned earlier today in a water reservoir in the Western Galilee has been cleared for publication: He was Michoel Cohen z”l, an 18-year-old talmid of Yeshivas Nachalas Afula and a resident of Ramat HaSharon.
Emergency personnel were called this afternoon to the area of the Ga’aton Quarry in the Galil after the bochur’s friends reported that he had gone into the water and failed to resurface. Firefighters, members of the special rescue unit, and divers from the elite Lahavah team conducted an extensive search using boats and professional rescue equipment.
Tragically, by evening, ZAKA announced that the young man had been recovered from the water without signs of life. He was transported to the hospital in Nahariya, and his body has since been released for kevurah.
Michoel’s father received the heartbreaking news while vacationing in the North with his family.
Michoel was the second son of his father, Rav Elyasaf Cohen, a member of the chareidi kehillah in Ramat HaSharon. He was also the grandson of noted mechanech Rav Ilan Cohen, a longtime mechanech at Chorev School in Ramat Gan.
As a child, Michoel attended Talmud Torah HaRambam in Ramat HaSharon and later learned in a yeshiva ketanah in Bnei Brak. This past year, he began learning in Yeshivas Nachalas Avraham in Afula—widely known as “Nachalas Afula”—where he quickly became known for his deep hasmadah and genuine avodas Hashem.
Roshei yeshiva and talmidim described Michoel as a ben aliyah, a sincere and elevated bochur, whose love for learning and refined middos stood out. He was beloved by his peers and known for his consistency, warmth, and dedication.
“He was the address for all the boys in his shiur—and even for the older bochurim,” one friend recalled. “He would always strengthen the atmosphere of kedushah on Fridays and Shabbos, making it a personal mission to uplift those days for the whole chevrah.”
Details regarding the levayah, expected to take place Thursday in Ramat HaSharon, will be announced shortly.
{Matzav.com Israel}
Heartbreaking. The summer vacation unfortunately has so often resulted in terrible and senseless tragedies. We understand the need to change routine and have some fun. But this year especially, in the height of the giyus crisis, the R”Y’s called on the bochurim and yungeleit to keep a low profile and stay home. Its just the first week. Maybe rethink vacation plans.