60,000 gloves, 24,000 face masks heading to Israel thanks to Broussard PPE maker
by Robert Stewart, The Advocate
October 17, 2023
SafeSource Direct, a Broussard-based personal protective equipment manufacturer, has partnered with the American Medical Manufacturers Association to send 60,000 nitrile gloves and 24,000 face masks to Israel to help medical volunteers manage the ongoing fallout of the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas and the ensuing conflict.
The items were shipped Monday to volunteers from ZAKA Search and Rescue, an Israeli humanitarian emergency response nonprofit, according to a news release. The organization also offers Jewish burial services to honor the dead.
Hamas, which rules the nearby Gaza Strip along the Mediterranean Sea, bombarded Israel on Oct. 7 in a brutal attack that killed hundreds of people. Israel swiftly responded with strikes of its own, and the ongoing chaos has killed more than 4,000 and has left residents scrambling to find aid, according to the Associated Press.
As critical medical supplies have dwindled in Israel, the American Medical Manufacturers Association asked its network to provide donations. ZAKA Search and Rescue’s equipment for handling corpses was wiped out in three days following the Hamas attack, according to the news release.
“We know organizations in Israel need our help,” SafeSource Direct President Justin Hollingsworth said in a statement. “We welcomed the opportunity to step forward to honor and save lives impacted by terror with our made-in-America nitrile gloves and procedure masks.”
HealthIL, a health care innovation network in Israel, also helped facilitate the supply shipment.
“Health care organizations find themselves on the frontlines in a time of crisis. We were pleased to be able to connect these two organizations and to support this critical work,” Yoav Fisher, Head of Strategy at HealthIL, said in a statement.
American Medical Manufacturers Association officials said U.S. producers are “uniquely qualified” to meet the urgent PPE needs in Israel.
“With the help of HealthIL, we located ZAKA and put our collective resources into action,” AMMA Executive Director Eric Axel said in a statement.
Email Robert Stewart at robert.stewart@theadvocate.com or follow him on Twitter, @ByRobertStewart.