TEL AVIV — A 260-strong Israeli medical unit reports having treated some 100 victims of the Nepalese earthquake by Wednesday night, Nepal time, less than 12 hours after its rapid deployment of an emergency field hospital in Kathmandu.

Supported by 100 tons of equipment and supplies, the unit is prepared to treat hundreds more patients over the coming days, where possibly thousands in outlying areas remained trapped under the rubble of the April 25 quake that has already claimed more than 5,000 lives.

"We arrived [Tuesday] evening, Nepal time after deploying overnight. By this morning [Wednesday], we were already receiving our first patients … about 100 in the first five or six hours," said Dr. Col. Ofer Merin, medical manager of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) field hospital.

In a briefing Wednesday, Merin said the IDF facility is treating four types of patients:

  • Those who had been trapped for up to four days that had just been air evacuated to Kathmandu.
  • Overflow patients from local hospitals.
  • Trekkers stuck in the mountains, many of them suffering frostbite and more extensive wounds.
  • Outpatients from the capital who cannot be treated by overwhelmed over-capacity clinics and treatment centers.

The IDF field hospital is one of the largest emergency treatment facilities set up since the 7.8-magnitude earthquake.

"I'm not aware of details regarding the different rescue units here … but as far as I know, we are the largest delegation operating now," Merin said.

"The IDF is able to deploy larger units much faster than other countries. We're coming with 260 people and we know how to react immediately when we hear there is a disaster," he said.

The IDF noted that the hospital operating in Nepal is the largest delegation ever deployed overseas. Deployments in recent years have included disaster relief missions to Haiti, Japan and the Philippines.

The facility features advanced operating rooms capable of treating up to three patients at a time and all necessary laboratories, diagnostic equipment and patient tracking systems.

"We came with everything needed in a typical hospital: emergency room, pediatric, ob-gyn, orthopedic, etc.," Merin said.

As for unique Israeli-developed technologies, deployed here, Merin cited an electronic, hand-held tablet that personnel use to track patient information, medical protocol and lab results.

"This is something unique to our field units, especially when dealing with mass casualties. We intend to treat hundreds of patients in the next few days."

The IDF also brought powered plasma, an Israeli invention that allows indefinite stockpiles of blood that would otherwise perish in areas lacking in refrigeration.

"Plasma is something you have to keep fresh and frozen in the field. … With the 12-hour flight we had and the time we intend to deploy this hospital, our supply wouldn't last after three or four days," he said.

"But this is easy. You just add water and it's just as good and fresh as frozen plasma."

The officer said the IDF was working in close cooperation with the Nepalese authorities as well as other international emergency teams, including American military first responders.

"The physicians here are giving a very high level of care, but they're full; overextended. They received us with open arms and our cooperation with them is very unique," said Merin.

Email: bopallrome@defensenews.com

Twitter: @OpallRome

About Barbara Opall-Rome

Opall-Rome is Israel bureau chief for Defense News. She has been covering U.S.-Israel strategic cooperation, Mideast security and missile defense since May 1988. She lives north of Tel Aviv. Visit her website at www.opall-rome.com.

Share:
More In Pentagon