A devastating accident claimed the life of Rafael Ari Noach Koteiner, a 25-year-old member of the Gerer community in Ashdod, who was killed Sunday afternoon in a serious collision between his private vehicle and a truck on Route 57 near the Nitzanei Oz interchange.

According to emergency services, the crash occurred at approximately 3:15 p.m. Rescue teams worked to extricate the victim from the wreckage. Paramedics reported that the young man had sustained severe multi-system injuries and showed no signs of life, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Ronen Karasik, a volunteer medic who responded to the incident, said, “This was an accident involving a truck and a private vehicle. Sadly, the driver of the car was pronounced dead due to the severity of his injuries.”

Emergency response volunteers were dispatched to the scene and worked to ensure proper respect for the deceased while collecting remains. Police have opened an investigation into the circumstances of the crash.

The victim’s body was transferred to the national forensic institute in Abu Kabir. Details regarding the funeral, which is expected to take place Monday, will be announced.

Rafael Ari Noach was born in Ashdod on April 12, 2001, to his father, Rabbi Avraham Chanuch Koteiner, a member of the Gur community and manager of the local Gur cooperative store, and to his mother, Rivka Koteiner, daughter of Rabbi Chaim Brodzek, a longtime communal figure who previously served as chairman of the religious council in Ashdod and Arad.

He was educated in Gur institutions, including Yeshivas Beis Yisroel in Ashdod, and later continued his studies in Gur yeshivos in Chatzor and in the general Chassidic kibbutz yeshiva Chayei Torah in Beitar Illit.

For his livelihood, he initially worked at Mishkan Hatecheiles and in recent years held a senior position at the Osher Ad supermarket branch in Afula. He was on his way to work at the time of the fatal accident.

Friends and acquaintances described him as a warm and gentle individual, devoted to his family and known for his kindness and respect toward his parents.

Umacha Hashem dimah me’al kol ponim.

{Matzav.com}