Review 22.10
25 July - 7 August 1997

My perspective on the shocking tragedy at the 15th Maccabiah Games Opening Ceremony in Tel Aviv is coloured by being at the site of the bridge disaster some 20 minutes after it occurred.

Seated expectantly in the grandstand with my wife and son, knowing the thrill of marching as a former Australian Maccabiah representative back in 1973,our enthusiasm was already dented by knowledge that an accident had occurred confirmed by the frantic arrival of ambulances at the venue as we entered the stadium. However, our concern turned into shocked panic, when a fellow spectator, the wife of an Australian doctor already on the scene, received a call on her mobile from her husband and conveyed to us the news that the Australian contingent was injured in a collapsed bridge outside the ground, that there were scores of serious casualties, including several fatalities!

Our thoughts turned immediately to my older sister, a lawn bowler, my nephew, a member of the soccer team and to the rest of the team including dozens of life-long friends in the delegation.

We bolted out of the grandstand, past soldiers, to confront a devastating scene of despair and mayhem, compounded by the knowledge that my sister too was trapped in the water at the bottom of the pile but had been miraculously rescued at the last minute. We experienced a taste of the shock, anxiety and trauma that so many others endured that nightmarish night, and that with three fatalities and many still in intensive care, a trauma and grief some will long suffer.

The pain, agony, stunned disbelief, shock and tragedy were laced with incredible acts of heroism and bravery by members of the Australian team, Israeli police, medics and soldiers. The strength, resolve and dignity of the Australian team, their efficient managers as well as the Australian Ambassador and his colleagues, cool under intense pressure as they all dug deep into their ample reserves of courage and character were inspirational and unforgettable as was the dedication, skill and courage they continued to show during the following days.

They refused to take cheap shots at the organisers, they praised their Israeli rescuers and for the very best of reasons - to honour the bereaved - they decided to continue participating in the Games. In true Aussie spirit, for example, my sister with her team mates three days later won the lawn bowls triples Gold Medal, defeating Israel, with many other Australians winning gold, silver and bronze, and all earning admiration and respect for their nobility of spirit, composure and commitment under extreme pressure.

The justifiable widespread pride in the Australians and the genuine outpouring of condolences from Australia was matched only by a combination of genuine sympathy, remorse and shame felt across Israel at this self-inflicted disaster, this Òsenseless accidentÓ as Prime Minister Netanyahu put it.

Shame at the apparent criminal negligence, self-evident in the bridge collapse and widespread, profound concern with the troubling problems in Israeli society and culture it symbolised - the penchant for short cuts, careless improvisation, even reckless indifference, demonstrated in too many other tragedies and even in much daily behaviour in Israeli life. Anger and disbelief too that the Opening Ceremony continued, certainly without adequate modifications in view of the tragedy, tempered somewhat by realisation that the overriding goal achieved in keeping the huge crowd in the stadium for several hours was critical to maintain maximum access needed to facilitate the ongoing rescue efforts.

The Dotan Committee has already reported: ÒThe disaster was the result of a chain of failures which involved virtually all of the parties concerned.Ó Criminal negligence, according to reports, seems to characterise those who designed, built and contracted for the bridge with the public enquiry laying blame on bad planning, inexperienced builders, lack of proper standards, certification of public events, poor coordination and material. The Organising Committee is singled out for having Òfailed, at every step of the decision making process regarding the bridge constructionÓ by the Dotan Committee, which also recommended that the police commence criminal investigations of the companies and individuals implicated.

While the full measure of criminal and civil legal remedies must of course be exacted against all those parties implicated in this tragedy without equivocation, delay or the fudging of culpability, this disaster also embodies broader cultural and policy issues of insensitivity, irresponsibility and shoddiness in aspects of Israeli society.

These concerns must be properly addressed for the sake of IsraelÕs future, which if undertaken, may also in time provide some comfort that that the Australian deaths and critical injuries sustained will not have been in vain. At least the comments of Deputy Education Minister Moshe Peled suggest a growing awareness of the dimensions of the problems and steps necessary to tackle them. Referring to the lack of supervision by the Maccabiah Organising Committee and the absence of necessary permits he said the bridge collapse symbolises a society in which Òlives are lost because of a total lack of respect, disdain and indifference. Society can only be changed by educationÓ. Indeed, and by a relentless determination to implement the law.

On behalf of all my AIJAC colleagues, we extend our heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the bereaved families of Yetty Bennett, Gregory Small and Elizabeth Sawicki and we wish a speedy recovery to all those injured, the Australian delegation and the Maccabiah world at large. And that the Israeli people and decision-makers treat this tragedy as a watershed to trigger those changes in standards, behaviour and law enforcement so manifestly required.