OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Two former Overland Park residents, now living in Israel, say the Hamas attack is impacting everyone in the country.
“[I get] Chills to see a ghost town — Tel Aviv, it’s one the biggest, most vibrant cities in the world, and to see it completely empty day and night is a total change,” Joel Gutovitz said. “It feels like a nightmare; I can’t believe it happened."
Gutovitz is a medical student near Tel Aviv-Yafo.
Originally from Overland Park, Gutovitz has been in Israel for five years and started medical school at the Technion in Haifa.
He’s working as an intern physician at the Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv.
“The unity, the comradery and the spirituality make these hard times even harder, but it brings us together even more," he said.
As Gutovitz was on the heels of celebrating a holiday, an attack on Israelis happened.
“We were celebrating one of the happiest days on the Jewish calendar — Simchat Torah," Gutovitz said. “Army soldiers were coming into synagogues saying there’s been a terrorist attack, a big terrorist attack in the south.”
Just hours later, Gutovitz said everyone’s help was needed.
“We got a call on the radio — 'We need backup at the hospital; we have helicopters coming in with wounded individuals,'" he said. “No one questioned for a second — am I going into the hospital right now or not? It was an overwhelming response of support; everyone wanted to be there and everyone wanted to help these patients."
Gutovitz said the last 48 hours have been chaos as he's been working at a hospital.
“I’ve never seen a scene like this; we weren’t sure what the extent of the damage was, but to see 18- to 22-year-old kids coming out of those helicopters badly, badly wounded — [it's] like nothing I’ve ever seen before; straight out of a horror movie," he said.
Gutovitz says people usually ask for directions to certain hospital wings, but now the only place people are asking to get to is to donate blood.
He explained many people are bringing packages for soldiers, hospital staff and the injured.
“Even the Jewish community in Kansas City, we’re not strangers to this experience — in 2014, there was the attack at the Jewish Community Center,” he said. “The response we saw then, of overwhelming support, is exactly what’s happening here, and the thing that gets me through it and everyone is, the question of what can I do now?"
Natalie Cabell was in the United States for a brief work trip and her flight home to Tel Aviv was not possible.
“I don’t know when I’m going home, I don’t when it’s safe to go home or safe to fly,” she said. “Rockets are shooting all over the country, so to think that I’ll be able to in the next couple of days, to be reunited with my husband, is really a dream at this point.”
She said safety in Israel right now looks like staying in a bomb shelter all day.
“Really by the grace of God, my brother-in-law has been called to duty but has not seen combat yet,” Cabell said. “The teams are fighting with very old gear. Any watches, boots pants things like that. We need your help right now, there is no nuance in this war right now.”
Gutovitz said he hopes Kansas Citians shows support for those impacted by the attack.
“I wish KC and everyone would spread a message of love, a message of doing good for other people," he said. "L’chaim — seeing the good in other people, enjoying life with other people and living a life of love compassion and care."
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