"Many hikers remain in the stream, and it is difficult to rescue them."
Israeli authorities were working on Sunday afternoon to rescue around 100 teenagers who were trapped in the Ein Prat Nature Reserve in the Judean Desert after a fire broke out on a popular hiking trail.
“Firefighters from the Binyamin Regional Station are currently working on a fire in Nahal Prat,” the Israel Fire and Rescue Services said in a statement. “According to reports, many hikers remain in the stream, and it is difficult to rescue them. In addition, there is a topographical challenge, making it difficult to reach the center of the blaze.”
Nahal Prat is also known as Wadi Qelt.
The effort to rescue the trapped teens includes officers of the Fire and Rescue Services’ Lehava National Special Rescue Unit, as well as Israel Police aerial assistance, the statement noted.