2 men hospitalized, one in critical condition, after choking on Hanukkah doughnuts
70-year-old from Netanya found initially found with no pulse; 61-year-old from Ofakim in serious condition; ambulance service warns sufganiyot can be choking hazard, urges care
Michael Horovitz is a breaking news editor at The Times of Israel
An elderly man was hospitalized in critical condition Monday after choking on a Hanukkah doughnut in the coastal city of Netanya, medics said.
Magen David Adom (MDA) paramedics called to the scene found the 70-year-old not breathing and without a pulse, according to their statement.
MDA said that medics dislodged the piece of the doughnut, or sufganiyah, and took the man to the city’s Laniado Hospital, where he was in a critical and unstable condition.
Hours later, a 61-year-old man from the southern town of Ofakim was also rushed to the hospital in serious condition after he too choked on a sufganiyah. He was being treated at Beersheba’s Soroka Medical Center.
The MDA ambulance service warned that the jelly-filled oily sufganiyah, a popular traditional treat during the eight-day Jewish festival of Hanukkah, can pose a choking hazard for children and the elderly.
MDA advised cutting it into small pieces and to be cautious while eating.
Hanukkah began on Sunday evening and will continue until December 26.
