Last week, a vast wildfire broke out in our area, nearly reaching our doorstep. From the morning, we could already smell smoke and fire. As the hours passed, the air became increasingly heavy with the stench of smoke, as it thickened with ash. We rushed to complete our tasks and send out deliveries on time, but one Chubeza deliveryman was unable to reach us, forcing vegetable deliveries along his route to be delayed until Friday morning.

For over 30 hours, fire raged across the eastern region, from Beit Shemesh and the villages of Eshtaol and Mesilat Zion, all the way to Nof Shalom and the Trappist Monastery in Latrun. The sharav heatwave had created dangerously combustible wildfire conditions — high temperatures, dry air, parched vegetation, and strong winds fueling the flames to lick rapidly through wooded areas. This incredibly fierce wind carried embers hundreds of meters from the site of the first blaze, igniting wildfires at a frightening pace.

The fire reached the nearby Seventh Brigade Junction where the Armored Corps Memorial is located. There was concern it might spread toward Kfar Bin Nun, Chubeza’s home, but instead, the winds pushed the flames northward to the wide-open spaces in beautiful Park Canada. Thick smoke and ash reached our farm, covering vehicles and plants in the field (you might still see traces of it in the coming weeks), but thankfully, no real flames arrived. We were incredibly fortunate and are deeply grateful.

This video vividly captures the scene. The area north of Chubeza is completely scorched, while beyond the hill in the Ayalon Valley near us, the fields remain green.