Comptroller warned years ago that Mt. Meron was disaster waiting to happen
Current comptroller Matanyahu Englman said his office has been tracking the issue and may initiate a more comprehensive probe given the extent of the tragedy.
By YONAH JEREMY BOBMourners gather at a funeral for one of the victims of the 45 deceased of the Mount Meron tragedy, Lag Ba'omer, 2021.(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
The State Comptroller reports of 2008 and 2011 had said that the writing was on the wall for a disaster waiting to happen on Lag Ba’omer at Mount Meron – long before Thursday night’s catastrophe.Former comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss had said that the site was not equipped to handle the vast crowds; that law enforcement lacked the capability to limit the numbers to reasonable levels; and that there were poor safety measures in place to prevent such an event from occurring.In addition, current comptroller Matanyahu Englman said his office has been tracking the issue and may initiate a more comprehensive probe given the extent of the tragedy.Lindenstrauss’ 2008 report had warned of “dangers to human life” at Mount Meron’s Rashbi (Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai) compound, because there was no single authority taking responsibility as the event’s go-to agency.Later, in 2011, another report said: “The existing situation must be immediately changed – including ending the abandonment and harm to the holy place,” as well as treating the important national and religious site with disrespect.According to safety standards, no more than 15,000 people should have been permitted on the site at a time, yet crowds on Thursday were estimated to be over 100,000.Even that number was low compared to years before the coronavirus pandemic.Former deputy defense minister Rabbi Eli Dahan in an interview with 103FM noted the existence of a parliamentary committee that was set up in 1993 to examine the conditions in Mount Meron."The government isn't in control and isn't ensuring the safety of the space," he said.In 1993, the committee was set up and comprised of Dahan, then director for civil affairs at the Justice Ministry, and as well as director of holy sites in Israel.
"We checked the issue from every angle possible. We visited [Mount] Meron, and advised in our report that the State take over responsibility for the site - meaning they assume ownership."A private ownership does not allow for the establishment of rules and regulations, it cannot manage the site," Dahan relayed of the report.Dahan added that the site at Mount Meron should be under the same auspices and scrutiny as the Western Wall - "it is the second most toured place in Israel after the Kotel - and if that happens, Meron will look totally different."
