Bat Ayin is a small town with roughly 2,000 inhabitants located in Gush Etzion. The town has many unpaved dirt roads and no street numbers, which makes finding people who are suffering from medical emergencies nearly impossible for anyone unfamiliar with the town or driving standard vehicles.

 

United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Yaakov Meir Fragin is an ambucycle driver who has lived in Bat Ayin his entire life. He runs the local grocery store and knows the town and the surrounding area like the back of his hand. In addition to being an EMT, Yaakov is also part of his town’s emergency preparedness team. His lifesaving skills and intimate knowledge of the area make him the perfect person to respond to any emergency in the vicinity. 

 

Yaakov’s ambucycle enables him to race down local paths and alleyways to respond to medical emergencies in the town in the fastest time possible.  

 

Last Wednesday, a young woman was washing her hands at the entrance to the midrasha when she suddenly collapsed in convulsions. Her friends urgently called for help.

 

The alert came out as an incident occurring on “Hamayanot street” and no further information was given. Being familiar with the area, Yaakov knew exactly where the midrasha was and raced over on his ambucycle, zooming down the dirt path and arriving in mere seconds.

 

Yakov found the 23-year-old victim collapsed on the ground, semiconscious after having had a seizure. During the uncontrollable convulsions, she had bitten her tongue and there was a large amount of blood pooled in her mouth. Yaakov carefully cleared the fluids from the woman’s mouth to secure and maintain a clear airway. Then, he checked her vitals and was in communication with the nearest ambulance to direct them to the exact location. The ambulance took nearly 20 minutes to arrive, and during the entire time, Yaakov continued to provide treatment. As the woman began to recover, Yaakov learned that she was otherwise healthy and had no prior history of seizures, which made this incident all the more concerning. 

 

Thankfully, the dedicated volunteer was there right away to treat her and keep her stable until the ambulance crew could arrive and transport her to the hospital. 

 

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