In a moving encounter that underscored the human side of first response medicine, United Hatzalah volunteers recently met with Penina Cohen, the woman whose life was saved after she was critically injured during the missile strike in Beit Shemesh on Day 2 of Operation Roaring Lion.

The meeting took place as part of United Hatzalah’s “Rescuer Survivor” initiative, a project that brings together our medics with the people whose lives they helped in moments of crisis.

Michael Kibudi, Moishy Shechter, and Menachem Wizman, volunteers in United Hatzalah’s specialized rescue unit, were among the first responders to arrive at the devastating scene of the direct missile impact in Beit Shemesh. The sights they encountered that day remain etched in their memory.

“It was a very difficult and complex scene,” the volunteers recalled during the meeting. Rubble and ruins seemed to pop up ever where they turned. During those first minutes, they frantically searched for survivors and those injured. “Penina was one of those injured we found and our training immediately kicked in and we began providing lifesaving care under intense conditions,” commented one of first responders.

Penina sustained severe injuries from the blast. Acting quickly, the volunteers applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding. They then used United Hatzalah’s tactical stretcher to carefully extract her from the impact site and transfer her to further medical treatment.

Dudu Amar, head of the Lavi branch of United Hatzalah in the Beit Shemesh region, was also present at the reunion. Dudu noted that volunteers remained on scene for many hours following the strike, “making sure they did everything they possibly could to provide the very best medical care and help save as many lives as they could.”

For Penina, the encounter was deeply emotional. Meeting the men who had stood beside her in those critical moments helped her along her recovery journey, both physically and psychologically.

She thanked the volunteers for their dedication and courage, telling them that their actions had given her a second chance at life.

While this was a very impactful and uplifting gathering, the spirit of the reunion was overshadowed with a sense of loss. The volunteers expressed their condolences to Penina and her family for the loss of Penina’s husband, Yossi, who was killed in the attack, and offered their hopes that the family will know only better days ahead.

Penina’s husband, Yosef, was one of nine killed in that missile attack. United Hatzalah’s medic Ronit Elimelech and her mother Sara, as well as three siblings from the Biton family were also among those who lost their lives on that tragic day.

For the volunteers of United Hatzalah, such moments serve as a powerful reminder of why they respond. Behind every emergency call is a life, a family, and a story that continues long after the sirens fade.