Gerstein, Demetri
Son of Larissa and Boris. Demetri was born on the 11th of Sivan 5743 (23.5.1983) in the Ukraine. Julia’s brother. In 1993 he immigrated to Israel with his family. They lived in Bat Yam. To the Israel Prison Service, Demetri was recruited on May 9, 2006, to the Nachshon unit. In his last position he served as a team leader and excelled in his work. Dima joined the officers’ course combined with the designated course. In the unit Demetri met Moran, and they got engaged. Meishar Demetri fell in operational activity during the Carmel fire. On Thursday, 25 Kislev, on the 2 nd of December 2010, a forest fire burned on Mount Carmel, always green. The fire, known as the “Carmel disaster”, the largest in the country’s history, destroyed a forest, grove and residential buildings in a large area of the Carmel Park and surrounding communities. About seventeen thousand people were evicted from their homes, close to twenty-five thousand dunams and millions of trees burned. About a third of Kibbutz Beit Oren houses went up in flames and dozens of other homes in the Ein Hod Artists Village and the Yemin Orde Youth Village. Only three days later did the fire forget. In the hours following the outbreak of the fire, strong winds blew the flames, which quickly spread to the Hik River, the Har Alon reserve, Damon Prison, Shukf Mountain Nature Reserve and Kibbutz Beit Oren. Due to grave concern for human life, it was decided to evacuate prisoners from Damon Prison and then to Carmel Prison. Police officers and officers who were involved in blocking traffic routes, the fire fighters of the Firefighters and Rescue Service, and cadets and instructors of the IPS Officers ‘Course, participated in the first round, including Demetri, and at 15:30 the cadets’ bus moved between ancient quarries and Beit Oren, followed by police cars. Suddenly the wind changed its direction and began to send tongues of burning fire to the bus, huge walls of fire blocking the traffic artery, holding everything at the top of every shred of life, killing forty-four men and women, including thirty-seven officers of the Israel Prison Service officers and course commanders , The bus driver, three firemen, and three police officers, Demetri was twenty-seven and a half years old He was brought to eternal rest in the military cemetery in Holon, where he left his parents, sister and fiancee, and he was awarded the Medal of Honor by the Israel Prison Service Commissioner after his demise. proud of you. “The victims of the fire disaster are commemorated at a monument built in the Carmel forests near Kibbutz Beit Oren (the information on this page is based on data available to the Unit for the Commemoration of the Soldier, the full story of life will be published later). (This page is part of the Yizkor memorial project held by the Ministry of Defense)