A Katyusha day

Well, I had the feeling that the Israeli army announcements yesterday about their elimination of more Katyusha rocket launchers were premature. We’ve definitely had a Katyusha day today (about 11 alarms so far and the day is not out yet). Nasrallah showing us that Hezbollah is definitely not yet down and out. The count so far today for the whole of northern Israel- about 220 Katyusha rockets landed, I person (innocent civilian please note) killed, 73 injured. One rocket landed in a open space next to a neighbouring suburb to where we live. A friend of a friend said that he saw the smoke cloud from his porch.

3 times this morning I started to walk our dog Sushi and each time I had to return home because the sirens went off. Maybe that’s why she couldn’t hold her water when the sirens went off in the afternoon. Or maybe she’s just getting more afraid. She wouldn’t be the only one. I know some young people who didn’t go down to the shelter when the sirens went off in the first two weeks but do so every time nowadays. Others just don’t believe that it could hit them so they go on driving and walking as usual.

Like other Haifa residents, I have started to listen to our local Haifa radio station Radio Haifa. I’m not normally very taken by their programming but they do have the best reporting about rocket hits and casualties in Haifa and the area. It’s also good to listen to them when one is driving because they’re the only radio station that broadcasts the sirens. If you’re driving with the windows closed and the air-conditioner on (it’s summer and all cars in Israel have conditioning) and the and one of the national radio stations on, you might not hear the siren. Radio Haifa has a jingle proclaiming that they’re the only radio station with online alarms. It’s definitely got them new listeners.

You too can listen to Radio Haifa via the Internet http://www.1075.fm/ although it gets a bit overloaded (at least during peak shelling time 9am – 8pm Israel time = 2am – 1pm EDT) . Who knows, maybe this will really be the last day of shelling, this time around. Tomorrow morning the cease fire is due to go into force. After a day like today, it’s difficult to believe that it might all be quiet in our home town from tomorrow. For the meantime.