ZAKA
South Africa
SAVING THOSE
WHO CAN BE SAVED
HONORING THOSE
WHO CANNOT
ABOUT
ZAKA International Rescue and Recovery, founded in 1995, is a world-renowned organization with a unique mission. They currently have 52 international volunteer units operating globally, of which South Africa is one.
ZAKA South Africa is staffed by a team of committed volunteers on call around the clock to deploy at any given second to local or global disasters. Our mission primarily is to save those who can be saved and honour those who cannot. The guiding philosophy of all of our work is to have the utmost respect for the living and the dead. Our mission is embodied through the everyday activities of our different teams: Light Urban Search and Rescue, Chessed Shel Emes, Relief and Rehabilitation, Fire Containment and Population Intelligence who work cohesively to deploy to disaster scenes and deliver assistance to affected victims as soon as possible.
2015
Year Established
in SA
50+
Fire Containment Unit Calls
since 2020
78
Active Team Members
1
United response team to Serve the Community
15+
Relief Team Responses
1
International Search and Recovery Mission
25+
Chessed Shel Emes Calls
5
Dedicated vehicles in our fleet
DIVISIONS
Chessed Shel Emes
Chessed Shel Emes epitomizes the ultimate kindness in ensuring that the dead are buried in accordance with Jewish law and in a dignified manner. This team is there long after every scene has been cleared, and spend hours ensuring every drop of blood spilled and human remains are collected. This team deals with untold tragedy, supporting people at their lowest points. They do it all quietly, with no recognition, thanks, or cameras.
We work closely with the Chevrah Kadisha in ensuring that every Jew gets a halachik burial. This is considered true virtue as the beneficiary of this kindness, the deceased, can never return the kindness. Our team were amongst the first in the world to deploy to the Ethiopian Airlines plane crash, together with ZAKA Israel, in order to recover the bodies of two Israeli victims.
Light Urban Search, Rescue & Recovery
Light Urban Search, Rescue and Recovery was created in the unfortunate event that a disaster occurs which requires rescue of trapped victims, or worse, to recover bodies. It has been shown that in the first few hours of a structural collapse most victims are rescued using light rescue techniques.
Our search and rescue team run monthly training activities, and on several occasions have been invited to partake in international training exercises. Notably, our team recently partook in a joint training exercise in Indiana, USA, led by the US Army National Guard.
Fire Containment Unit (FCU)
The Fire Containment Unit is a group of individuals trained in basic fire dynamics and in the components of fire containment. The team assists with all active fire related emergencies through the use of their highly specialized fire trailers. This unit is operational at all hours and aims to contain any active fires within the Johannesburg Jewish Community, in the critical minutes before the fire department arrives.
In addition to containment, our team aims to increase fire awareness and fire safety within the community, through distribution of educational material, maintenance of fire hydrants and disbursement of fire safety equipment.
Relief
Our Relief and Rehabilitation team is broken down into two divisions. The first oversees relief within the Jewish community, and the second services the broader community with relief and humanitarian aid. Relief to the community takes place in a multitude of forms, often through providing meals or assistance to members of the community affected by tragedy, or by ensuring our volunteers are taken care of on a disaster scene or deployment. Relief to the broader community to date has taken on many forms including aid at the Alexander shack fires, flooding and torrential storms.
Population Intelligence
Our Population Intelligence (PI) team tracks, analyses and records the way in which the population behaved in a time of crisis or disaster in order to reduce the time, resources and risk in locating the missing, injured and dead. The Public Behaviour Officer (PBO) is the officer tasked with gathering information from various places and people to best understand the population’s movements and behavior during a time of crisis or disaster. This is incredibly helpful to communal response teams in understanding how best to approach a disaster scene.
PROJECTS & UPCOMING EVENTS
PARTNER WITH US
During the worst moments in your life, our team is there. House fires, disasters, or death – our team is there to pick up the pieces and provide comfort and support. They are on the roads when it’s cold and wet, hot and humid, at all hours of the day night, to ensure you and your loved ones are safe. We are staffed solely by a team of committed volunteers, and rely on your support to sustain our organization.
CONTACT
CALL IN CASE OF EMERGENCY | (+27) 086 18 000 18
SCAN THIS CODE TO ADD THE ZAKA EMERGENCY LINE INTO YOUR CONTACTS
Inquiries
For any inquiries, questions or further information, please email us on info@zaka.org.za or fill out the following form
Head Office
Beyachad South Africa
2 Elray Street,
Raedene, JHB,
South Africa
Contact Us
CONTACT
CALL IN CASE OF EMERGENCY | (+27) 086 18 000 18
SCAN THIS CODE TO ADD THE ZAKA EMERGENCY LINE INTO YOUR CONTACTS
Enquiries
For any enquiries, questions or further information, please email us on info@zaka.org.za or fill out the following form
Head Office
Beyachad South Africa
2 Elray Street,
Raedene, JHB,
South Africa