Father and son, 3 others drown over the weekend
Rescue services find body of 10-year-old off the coast of Acre after overnight search; 20-year-old dies in an apparent snorkeling accident near Eilat and toddler drowns in Hadera
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The body of a 10-year-old boy was located Sunday morning near the coast of Acre, after he and his father drowned at sea, among a series of drowning incidents in the country over the weekend.
The body of the boy’s father, 46, was found by beach-goers on Acre’s beach on Saturday. Only later did it emerge that his son had gone missing off the coast, after his mother reported the incident to police.
Helicopters, patrol vessels, and volunteers along the beaches took part in an overnight search for the boy, police said.
The 10-year-old was located by Fire and Rescue Services volunteers some 200 meters from the coast on Sunday morning, after a night of search efforts.
A Magen David Adom medic said that after locating the child, forces took him to the nearby Israeli Naval Academy. “We performed medical tests but he was without vital signs and we had no choice but to declare him dead,” the medic said.
The family was said to be from Nazareth. They were not immediately identified.
In other similar incidents over the weekend, a 40-year-old man drowned at an undeclared beach near Zichron Yaakov, some 45 kilometers south of Acre. And a 20-year-old man drowned at Eilat’s Princess Beach in the south of the country. The man apparently drowned while snorkeling, the Ynet news site reported.
And on Sunday afternoon, a toddler was declared dead in Hadera after he drowned at the beach, reported Walla News. Magen David Adom paramedics attempted to revive the young child, but were forced to declare him dead.
Since the beginning of beach season, starting in late March, at least 18 people have drowned at sea, in pools, and in other bodies of water. One hundred and fourteen others others have required medical attention after nearly drowning, including six who were in in critical condition, Ynet reported.
On Sunday, an 87-year-old man was evacuated to the Shaare Tzedek Medical Center in Jerusalem in critical condition, after a near-drowning at a public pool in the city.
Also Sunday, a 69-year-old man who was in serious condition after a near-drowning a week earlier, also near Acre, was pronounced dead at Galilee Medical Center.
