ByGIL HOFFMAN, TOBIAS SIEGAL, JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Updated:

An emergency delegation from the IDF's Homefront Command will be sent to Miami to help the rescue effort from the Champlain Towers building in the Miami suburb of Surfside, Defense Minister Benny Gantz said on Saturday night.

In coordination with the governor's office in Florida and the Foreign Ministry, Gantz decided to send a team of engineering and rescue specialists.

"We will make every effort to help save human lives, and to offer our support to the Jewish community and to our American friends," Gantz said.

Diaspora Minister Nachman Shai landed in Florida Sunday. During his trip, he will meet with local Jewish community leaders and Miami-Dade mayor Daniella Levine Cava.

Upon his return to Israel, Shai will present Prime Minister Naftali Bennett plans for assistance to the Jewish community. 

"We will do whatever we can to help the Americans in any way they deem fit," Shai told The Jerusalem Post en route to Miami. "America can learn from Israeli experience. Unfortunately, we have too much experience with disasters."   

Shai said his visit would send a powerful message about the relationship between Israel and American Jewry being a two-way street. He said this was very important to the prime minister.

Israel will send aid to Miami, Bennett promised on Friday afternoon. In a tweet Bennett wrote that "we are following with concern the difficult images that are coming out from Florida. Our Foreign Ministry representatives in Miami and Israel are doing everything possible to assist and address the situation.

"The entire nation of Israel prays for the safety of those injured and missing in the disaster," Bennett wrote. "From here we send support to our brethren in the Jewish community in particular, and to all Florida residents in general, and express our sorrow during this tragic event." 

On Saturday night, the prime minister spoke to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Expressing condolences on behalf of the Israeli public, Bennett reaffirmed his pledge to provide aid.

"The US is our greatest ally and we all stand by your side in this difficult time," Bennett told DeSantis. "We all pray for the safety of those injured. I have instructed all sectors of the Israeli government to assist in any way necessary."
 
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said that at such difficult times, Israel must stand with its friends in America and the Jewish people in Florida in particular. He said it was a badge of pride that Israel could be effective in providing assistance.

On Sunday, President-elect Isaac Herzog sent a missive to the President of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation, expressing his condolences and offering support to the local Jewish community.
 
"The Jewish Agency has always worked to ensure the safety and security of our Jewish sisters and brothers whenever and wherever they may be. As you begin to assess needs, I would like to offer our assistance in the days and weeks to come. Our global presence and infrastructure allow us to swiftly respond to a tragedy like this."
United Hatzalah in cooperation with El Al will also be sending a team from its Psychotrauma and Crisis Response Unit to assist victims of the condo collapse in Surfside, Florida.
 

The team will work to provide psychological support and emotional stabilization to those affected by the collapse, including families and neighbors of those who were injured, killed, missing or in any other way involved in the tragedy. United Hatzalah volunteers will also make themselves available to the wider community.

“As soon as the collapse occurred, we began making preparations for the mission to depart," said President and Founder of United Hatzalah Eli Beer. "When we contacted El Al about the possibility of having this mission, they were eager to help and decided to fully sponsor the flights for the team."

The mission will be led by Vice President of Operations for United Hatzalah Dov Maisal, who has led disaster response missions to Nepal, Haiti and Japan as a paramedic. He will partner directly with Clinical Operations Director of the PCRU Einat Kaufman, who is a cognitive psychologist and a trained EMT.

Most recently, the same team provided support to those affected by the Meron tragedy, those injured, mourning and to the first responders themselves.

"This will be the fourth emergency relief mission conducted by our Psychotrauma and Crisis Response Unit in the United States in as many years," Beer added. "El AL is an incredible partner and we are forever grateful for their support of this mission which is to help the community in Surfside that is suffering terribly right now."

"I myself was the benefactor of the kindness of the entire South Florida community during my fight with COVID-19 last year and if I were able to go myself on this mission I would," Beer added. "I am sending my best people on this mission in order to provide as much help as we can. We stand with you and we are sending you the best of the best to help. They will be there as soon as regulations permit us to arrive.”

Dianne Lob, Chair, William Daroff, CEO, and Malcolm Hoenlein, Vice Chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, issued a statement saying they were devastated by the disaster and grateful for the ongoing leadership and support shown by the local and broader Jewish community for those impacted by the tragedy.

"As we continue to monitor this developing situation, the American Jewish community prays for the recovery of the victims, and extends condolences to those who lost loved ones," they said.