This week, Ortal Dayan, who suffered severe injuries in a motor vehicle accident last July, reunited with Itamar Mustaki, the United Hatzalah volunteer EMT who saved her life. The reunion took place at the site of the crash near Masmiya Junction in central Israel, exactly one year after the accident.
On that day, Dayan, a resident of Beitar Illit, was driving her private vehicle on Highway 40 when she collided with a truck. Mustaki, a volunteer from United Hatzalah’s Hevel Sorek branch, was dispatched as the closest medical responder and arrived first on the scene to provide critical care.
“I was driving nearby, less than a minute away, when I received an alert on my communications device,” Mustaki recalled. “When I arrived, I found Ortal semi-conscious in her car. I immediately administered initial treatment, including stopping the bleeding and immobilizing her fractured limbs. She was then evacuated in serious condition to the hospital for further treatment.”
Dayan expressed her gratitude to Mustaki: “I remember you arriving within seconds. I saw your equipment bag open on the road as you began treating me. I lost a lot of blood, and I later learned at the hospital that if it weren’t for your initial treatment, I might not be standing here today. Thank you, Itamar, and thank you United Hatzalah!”
Visibly moved, Mustaki added, “I’m very emotional standing here today, a year later, at the exact location of the accident, seeing you on your feet. It makes me happy and gives me the motivation for why I volunteer with United Hatzalah—to save lives.”
