Eli Beer

Eli functions as Chief Coordinator of United Hatzalah, on a volunteer basis. United Hatzalah is Israel's largest all volunteer emergency medical response organization. Eli's experience with other volunteer organizations and MDA provide him with a world of experience. His expertise and experience in dealing with Mass Casualty Incidents (MCI) has put him in the forefront of international arena dealing with this phenomenon. Eli was sought out by the European Union to present a paper at the 2007 Homeland Security Conference [1] . Eli maintains a fond professional relationship with leaders of many other Hatzalah organizations including Hatzolah of New York [2] and Hatzolah of Los Angeles [3] . Eli's "career" in emergency rescue began on June 2, 1978 when, as a youth, he witnessed the bombing of the #12 bus. He was struck by the chaos of the incident and the dearth of local emergency rescue resources. From that moment on Eli nurtured the dream of legions of Hatzalah volunteers responding to the scene moments from the call. With years of volunteering in Israel's ambulance service (MDA [4] ) under his belt, Eli began to breathe life into his dream. Hatzalah had become a household word in Israel. Images of rescue volunteers racing through smoke, fire and mayhem to save the lives of people stricken by terror attacks, car accidents or medical emergencies became commonplace in the media. Fine-tuning his idea, in 2006, following the Second Lebanon War , Eli helped establish United Hatzalah, dedicated to unifying the level of professionalism, training and efficiency of the disparate Hatzalah organizations. List of Major Incidents Eli Beer played a key role. Ben Yehuda Street bombings – On December 1, 2001 while responding to the first explosion Eli began to assess the situation when he nearly became a victim of the secondary explosive device which exploded nearby knocking him to the ground. The second device specifically targeted first responders. 11 people were killed and 188 injured in those attacks [5] . Versailles wedding hall disaster – Manning the first ambulance on the scene Eli launched the MCI response plan for the worst civil disaster in Israel's history. Second Lebanon War – Eli Beer coordinated the activities of Hatzalah in Northern Israel with volunteers in other regions thereby establishing "proof of concept" for a United Hatzalah. Operation Cast Lead – Building on the model established during the Second Lebanon War, United Hatzalah ensured the safety of its volunteers by providing them with NIJ III Ballistic Helmets and Body Armor. In addition, local volunteers were rotated out of the operational theatre for recuperation and other volunteers were rotated in to provide emergency medical support for the duration of the conflict. Eli Beer is married to Gitty and they have five children, four girls and a boy.¹