Two young children were injured in separate household accidents over Shabbos, one in Bnei Brak and the other in Rechasim, prompting emergency responses by United Hatzalah volunteers.
On Shabbos afternoon, emergency responders were dispatched to a home in Bnei Brak after a 4-year-old boy swallowed a small battery and began choking. Shlomo Katzin, a United Hatzalah EMT serving as the organization’s Shabbos responder, arrived by ambulance and immediately attempted to dislodge the battery before transporting the child to Schneider Children’s Medical Center in Petach Tikvah.
The boy was suffering from mild respiratory distress but was reported to be in stable condition.
Katzin said, “I arrived quickly with a United Hatzalah ambulance, performed maneuvers and attempted to remove the battery, and then rapidly transported him to Schneider Hospital in Petach Tikvah. He was suffering from mild respiratory distress, and his condition was stable.”
Following the incident, United Hatzalah urged parents to keep small, sharp, or easily swallowed objects out of the reach of young children to help prevent choking and other serious injuries.
Earlier on Shabbos morning, another household accident occurred in Rechasim, where a 2-year-old toddler was scalded by boiling water from a hot-water urn inside his home. The child sustained burns to his upper body.
United Hatzalah Shabbos responders Arnon Alenbogen and Ariel Ben Elbaz were the first to arrive and provided emergency medical treatment before the toddler was transported to Rambam Medical Center in Haifa. He was listed in moderate condition.
Alenbogen and Ben Elbaz said, “Family members told us that the toddler was burned by boiling water (from a hot-water urn) in his home and suffered burns to his upper body. We provided him with initial medical treatment, after which he was transported to Rambam Hospital for further care. At this stage, his condition is defined as moderate.”
United Hatzalah reminded the public to place hot-water urns and electric kettles in locations that are inaccessible to children and to ensure that their electrical cords are also kept safely out of children’s reach.
