Medics treat 2,842 for injuries on Yom Kippur, including three wounded by rocket blast

12 hurt running to bomb shelters; 286 suffer effects of fasting; 283 injured in car accidents or biking; 146 women in labor taken to hospital, with one baby delivered in ambulance

Empty streets in Tel Aviv, on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and the holiest of Jewish holidays, October 12, 2024 (Miriam Alster/Flash 90)
Empty streets in Tel Aviv, on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and the holiest of Jewish holidays, October 12, 2024 (Miriam Alster/Flash 90)

Magen David Adom said Saturday its paramedics treated 2,842 people across Israel during Yom Kippur, including three lightly hurt by the force of a rocket that exploded in the Western Galilee.

Another 12 people were hurt while running to shelters amid rocket attacks, the ambulance service added.

Some 320 projectiles were fired or launched into Israel by Hezbollah from Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces said, while two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip.

According to MDA, 1,969 people who required medical attention were taken to hospitals for further treatment, including 286 patients who fainted, were dehydrated, or otherwise felt ill due to the fast.

Over 500 people were hurt while riding bikes, scooters, skateboards or rollerblading, including six seriously. Dozens were injured in car crashes, among them 11 people in serious condition.

The Jewish Day of Atonement is marked by fasting and prayer by many observant Jews, while many secular Israelis take advantage of the deserted roads and highways, and take to the streets on their bicycles.

An ambulance drives on an empty road at the entrance to Jerusalem, on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and the holiest of Jewish holidays, October 12, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

MDA also reported that it took 146 women to medical centers to give birth and that paramedics helped deliver a baby in the ambulance in Modiin Ilit while headed to a hospital.

As sundown approached on Friday, most local radio and television broadcasts gradually fell silent.

Usually, all media shuts down over Yom Kippur, but due to Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza and conflict with Hezbollah, some outlets remained operational on a partial basis over the holiday.

People ride their bicycles in Jerusalem on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement and the holiest of Jewish holidays, October 12, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Public transport was also halted, with buses and trains stopping their routes and Israeli air space closed to flights passing through, though this year there were air force jets and helicopters flying through the usually empty skies.

For paramedics, Yom Kippur is one of the busiest days of the year, with hundreds of extra medics, paramedics, ambulances and volunteers deployed across the country.

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