It is with great sadness and anguish that we announce the passing of one of our volunteers, Yoel Souisa, who was killed Thursday afternoon in a motor vehicle accident that took place on Highway 25 in the Negev.

Yoel was a member of our ambucycle unit and was critically injured while he was driving home on his ambucycle just after 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. He later died of his injuries in the hospital. The entire United Hatzalah family, the volunteers together with the management, are devastated by this tragic and untimely loss. We all share in the pain of the Souisa family.

Yoel Z’L. was a true friend, a loving father, and husband, and a dedicated volunteer who saved the lives of many other people. He was a symbol of dedication, volunteering, and selflessness. He would give of himself and his time, day and night, in order to help anyone around him.

Over the coming days, we will be dedicating all of the lifesaving efforts of the organization in the memory of our beloved friend and brother Yoel Souisa so that his soul may rise in heaven.

At this time, the Psychotrauma and Crisis Response Unit as well as the leadership of the organization is with the Souisa family and supporting them in their hour of need.

The President and Founder of United Hatzalah Eli Beer spoke about the terrible tragedy of the death of Yoel Souisa. “This is the third tragedy for this family. Yoel’s father was killed in the terror attack that shook Dimona in 2008, and his brother was killed in the Carmel fires in 2010. I have been with the family in the hospital all evening and the pain that we all feel is unbearable. Yoel lost his life due to the ‘terror’ on the roads that is taking place here in the Negev. People drive here without attention to the law and the level of enforcement needs to be raised significantly. Today this lawlessness, which has become commonplace in the south, claimed the life of a father, a husband, and one of our dear volunteers, who was one of the most active first responders in the region. Yoel regularly responded to 60 or more medical emergencies on a monthly basis and has saved countless lives. Another family was destroyed today because of this lawlessness on the roads and it needs to end.”

To support Yoel Souisa’s family in the wake of this terrible tragedy, please click here.