8-Year-Old Collapses Unconscious in Attack on Holon

In the most serious incident of Tuesday’s rocket barrage from Gaza, an 8-year-old lost consciousness during an attack on Holon and was evacuated to hospital in serious condition.

The girl apparently suffered a bout of heart arrhythmia brought on by acute anxiety after her family rushed to the stairwell in their building to take shelter, according to The Times of Israel citing initial reports.

A doctor at Wolfson Medical Center in the city told Channel 12 that on arrival she was given medication and electrical cardioversion treatment. Her condition has since improved.

The girl had suffered from “apparent arrhythmia caused by an anxiety attack,” Dr. Sion Huri, head of Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Wolfson.

“It’s pretty rare,” he said. “We haven’t seen many such cases in our lifetimes, but I’m optimistic she’ll recover.”

In Netivot, a rocket scored a direct hit on the Hadad family home. B’chasdei Shamayim, no injuries were reported, though the home was badly damaged.

“We heard a ‘boom’ and there was a power outage – we realized something was happening inside the house, it was a miracle from Hashem,” Batsheva Hadad told Channel 13.

She and her family rushed to the house’s bomb shelter moments before the rocket landed. “I told my husband to close the door tight, and he locked it tight,” Hadad said. “And then we heard a bang inside the house, I understood that something had happened.”

In another close call, a rocket from Gaza landed on Route 4 in Gan Yavneh, opening up a crater in the road. A bus driver who narrowly missed being hit, described the terror to Channel 12:

“I was on my way back to Gan Yavneh and I was at the intersection,” said Daniel Hazan, the bus driver. “Suddenly, when I was drinking my coffee, I heard the [rocket] alarm and did not stop to get out of the bus – and I saw the explosion.”

“I was stressed. I didn’t know how to function,” Hazan said. “Baruch Hashem, no one was on the bus. I drove away, I panicked. After 200 meters (yards) I stopped and I saw that the bus was hit by shrapnel: All the windows were shattered. My heart is still pounding – it’s scary. After seeing something like that with your own eyes, you feel more afraid. My body is still shaking.”

A mattress warehouse in the Hollandia factory in Sderot was set afire by a Gaza rocket, causing giant flames and billowing smoke.

Several firefighting units were dispatched to the scene, though their efforts were hampered by frequent rocket alerts that forced them to stop and seek shelter themselves, according to the Times of Israel.

CEO Avi Barssessat told Ynet that the 4,000-square-meter building, which was in danger of collapse, was full of merchandise waiting to be delivered to customers.

“I am seriously hurt by this situation,” Barssessat said. “It’s true that I’m not bleeding from anywhere, but the damage is huge. I am completely destroyed seeing my life’s work going up in flames.”

B’chasdei Shamayim, there were no injuries reported in Sderot.