Israel Issues New Warning on Use of Gas Masks
JERUSALEM — Israel ordered new precautions Friday on the use of gas masks after several people suffocated by failing to remove seals from air intakes during Iraqi missile alerts.
Health Ministry Director Moshe Mashiach said eight people have died in the week since Israel’s 4.7 million residents began donning gas masks and moving to sealed rooms to protect against a threatened chemical-weapons strike.
He said residents replaced the seals after alerts, expecting to lengthen the life of the filters. But people suffocated when they forgot to remove them the next time they put on the masks.
“They didn’t take the cover off the filter. So, there is an order now to throw them away,” he said.
“The filter will last several months if no water or moisture or gas gets into it.
“We hope with this, we will prevent further tragedies.”
The eighth fatality, reported Friday by the newspaper Haaretz, was a 35-year-old man from Eilat by the Red Sea who died during an alert Wednesday.
Three Israelis have died of heart attacks in various Iraqi missile strikes, which have wounded scores. Israeli air raid sirens have sounded nearly every day since the Gulf War began Jan. 17.
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