The Health Ministry conducted an earthquake exercise for the National Health Emergency Operations Center on Monday, the ministry announced in a statement.
Held in cooperation with the National Emergency Management Authority, the drill tested the ministry's preparedness as well as its ability to coordinate with emergency and rescue services, the statement said. The drill came as Venezuela is still reeling from last week's twin earthquakes, in which over a thousand people were confirmed killed and almost 50,000 missing.
The drill itself, set to wrap up on Tuesday, involved a scenario with tens of thousands of casualties and damage to infrastructure and transportation, energy lines, as well as other areas.
“Preparing for an earthquake is one of the most complex challenges facing the health system," said Health Ministry Director General Moshe Bar Siman Tov.
"Our responsibility is to prepare in advance, drill the health system and the National Health Emergency Operations Center, and ensure that even under the most severe extreme scenarios, we can continue saving lives and providing continuous, high-quality medical care. The exercise held today is part of an ongoing process to strengthen national preparedness, and we will continue to deepen it together with all health and emergency system officials.”
Despite Israel not facing many earthquakes, preparation is key to safety
Health Ministry Deputy Director General Dr. Sefi Mendelovich said the ministry would learn valuable lessons from the drill.
“The exercise we conducted today is the first stage in a series of drills intended to examine and improve the health system’s preparedness for an earthquake," she said.
"After drawing lessons from the exercise, we will expand the drills to the entire health system, as part of our commitment to continuously improving preparedness and the ability to provide the best possible response in any scenario.”
The last time Israel faced a major earthquake was during the British Mandate era in 1927, when hundreds were killed in a 6.3 magnitude tremor.
Although earthquakes are relatively rare in Israel, Israeli search-and-rescue teams and medical units have been deployed to natural disasters around the world.