Almost a month has passed since the sinkhole disaster at the villa in Keremi Yosef, in which the late Kalil Kimhi, 32 years old, was killed after he was sucked into the sinkhole that opened in the pool, but nothing has changed. Across the country, many villas operate similar to the villa where the disaster occurred, and they do so without a business license. And basically without any supervision and control.
The owners of the villa in Keremi Yosef, Natan and Rachel Meler, were arrested on suspicion of causing death by negligence and operating the villa as a place to stay without having a business license.
The two were brought to court and sent to house arrest.
The investigation in their case continues.
Despite the disaster, no body in the country makes sure that such villas operate with a business license, which means operating the place under supervision and control.
A sinkhole opened at a pool party in Kermi Yosef // Credit: Fire and Rescue Barges
Managed from the internet
A business license is no small matter.
In order to obtain such a license, several conditions must be met that guarantee the safety and security of those in and around the business.
In the process of granting the license, safety, planning and construction permits, hazard prevention, firefighting, insurance and more are checked.
A business license ensures that the business is conducted in a proper and safe manner.
In the prestigious Caesarea, many villas are offered for events, entertainment, vacations and weekends.
Every such villa has of course a pool.
We walked around the place to find out about villas of this type, but it soon became clear that in order to rent a villa in Caesarea you have to surf the Internet.
The owners of the villas actually entrust the management of the villa rental to the website operators, and part of the profit remains with the website operators.
On one of the villas on offer it is written: "If you are looking for accommodation that is entirely from the heart, with a warm atmosphere, fun facilities for children as well as adults and lots of treats - you have come to the very right place! Solid events up to 45 people and more."
About another villa it is written: "A real treat awaits you in a luxurious villa in Caesarea, located in a quiet area and has 8 bedrooms. The villa is intended for vacationing families, couples, groups and the religious public. In the villa you can enjoy a variety of attractions such as table games, a pampering pool, a barbecue station,
"I don't know anyone in the entire region who has a business license."
Illustration, photo: Vertical
We turned to several sites that offer villas in Caesarea.
The inspection shows that many villas operate without a business license.
On one of the sites we talked to the site operator about one of the villas she offers.
"This is a villa with 8 bedrooms. It can accommodate 25 people. The villa has a pool and there is a fully equipped kitchen."
The price is NIS 6,500 per night.
We pressed her: "There was the story with the business permit in the villa in Keremi Yosef. Do you have a business permit?"
According to her, "It has nothing to do with approving a business. Caesarea is not a mountainous area like that area. It won't happen here. Okay? It won't happen! It's not a business, it's a private house. It doesn't belong to a business. It's a house where people lived and they don't live there more, and they rent out the house for vacations."
We received information from the website operator about another villa.
We asked: "And what about business licensing?"
The operator answered: "Yes, it's funny. If you're closing a villa in the area of Karmi Yosef, then ask, but here in Caesarea it's different. Just because it happened doesn't mean it will happen again in other pools. It's also not the same area at all, and it's not related at all."
How many of these have you heard of?
We inquired on another website that offers villa rentals for vacations and events.
The website operator told us: "The price is 6,300 per night, minimum for two nights. The villa has a pool and everything you need."
We asked: "We are a little afraid of what happened in the villa with the sinkhole. Do you have a business permit?".
He replied: "There are no business permits. It is forbidden to do business here."
We asked: "So there won't be a problem from a safety point of view?", the owner of the site replied: "What is problematic? How many cases like this, when a sinkhole suddenly opens in the pool, have you heard in your life?".
The late Khalil Kimchi who was killed in the sinkhole disaster, photo: Sapir Khosa
We checked another site, third in number.
Here too we were offered a villa with 8 bedrooms at a price of NIS 7,500 per night, for at least two nights.
"Most of the villas here are people who rent for a short time during the summer," the website operator told us, "I don't know anyone in the entire area who has a business license. A business license is something you turn into a business. Here it is not a business."
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