By COLlive reporter
A five-year-old boy from the Chabad community in Lod, Israel, tragically passed away Sunday after being found unconscious in his family’s vehicle, where he had remained for approximately two hours.
The child, Betzalel Dovid Giller, OBM, was the son of R’ Menashe and Chaya Giller, a member of the Chabad community in Lod.
According to initial reports, the family had returned home, and Betzalel Dovid fell asleep during the drive. Family members exited the vehicle while the young boy remained inside.
Approximately two hours later, his father realized that his son was not in the house and returned to the vehicle, where he found him unconscious and showing signs of severe heat exposure.
Magen David Adom emergency services were immediately summoned, and rescue personnel carried out intensive resuscitation efforts in an attempt to save the child’s life.
Singer Avi Menachem, a resident of Lod who was at the scene, described witnessing the emergency response as one of the most difficult and distressing experiences of his life.
“Today I witnessed one of the most difficult and shocking sights I have experienced in my life,” Menachem said. “I was there and saw up close the attempts to resuscitate the young child who had been forgotten in the car.”
“It is difficult to describe in words what I saw,” he said, recalling “the rescue personnel who fought with all their strength for his life, and the pain and shock that were present at the scene.”
Menachem said he deliberately would not share further details about the condition inside the vehicle, saying they were “unnecessary and far too painful.”
Instead, he urged parents and caregivers to take additional precautions to ensure that such a tragedy does not happen again.
“Children are our lives,” he said. “We must do everything possible to prevent such a case, reminders on the phone, checking the car every time we get out, warning devices, and anything that can prevent the next tragedy.”
At the same time, Menachem strongly cautioned against assigning blame to the grieving family.
“There is no place here for judgment or accusations,” he said. “There is a family here that is going through, at this moment, the most terrible pain imaginable. My heart is with them.”
The levaya of Betzalel Dovid Giller, OBM, is scheduled to take place Sunday at 6:00 PM. He will be laid to rest in the children’s section of the municipal cemetery in Lod.
Baruch Dayan HaEmes.
