It is almost inconceivable that a week after the explosion that shook the Sharon and Gush Dan regions, and whose echoes reached Rosh HaAyin and Modi'in, the area of the old IMI factory in Herzliya looks like no man's land. More precisely - like a tourist site.
Cars of the curious search for the large crater caused by the explosion of explosives, which were hidden in an underground bunker. Only in the "nearby" country was such an area abandoned to its fate, without any law enforcement official in the country fearing secondary explosions that could claim lives in the open place. Every entity – the Israel Land Authority, the police, the municipality and the Ministry of Defense – all announced that they were not responsible. Thus, residents of the nearby neighborhoods of Herzliya Pituach and Nof Yam were abandoned to their fate.
The area in Herzliya was abandoned - residents fear the danger // Photo: Tal Ariel Yakir
It's not easy to locate the crater, which lies in the western part of the complex, about 20m from the edge of the cliff overlooking the sea. Near the edge of the cliff rests peacefully a light cloth mat, on which a family sat sometime for a pastoral night picnic. She was left behind as a warning sign of a disaster that could have been caused.
Graffiti on the walls, photo: Tal Ariel Yakir and Yaron Doron
"I can't believe it when I see people walking here with their children," says Hagai Yohanan, an archaeologist and tour guide who 30 years ago was the director of Apollonia National Park, which is nearby. He happened to arrive at an archaeological excavation not far away. "In the past, I told all the government and local officials that it would explode in their faces, and they still haven't done anything. This area is a danger to lives. The next explosion is only a matter of time."
Shut down the factory
On the 1950,<> dunams of sandy and wild vegetation, one of the factories of the military industry was built in <>. Explosives, ammunition and gunpowder were manufactured. In addition, special complexes were built for storing materials and pools for washing waste.
IMI factory building,
In July 1992, not far from the crater, an explosion occurred in an underground explosives warehouse. Two workers were killed in the incident and 66 were injured. A black mushroom of smoke rose into the sky, and the dangerous explosives scattered in all directions, causing environmental pollution. About five years later, due to the disaster, the factory was closed. Only Apollonia National Park, which was adjacent to IMI fences, remained.
Despite the contaminated land, private developers, the Israel Land Administration and the National Committee for the Planning of Preferred Housing Areas fantasized about the construction of residential projects, in which thousands of housing units with views of the Mediterranean Sea would be built. The idea was shelved following the High Court of Justice filed by the Adam Teva VeDin Association and the Herzliya Municipality. Two years ago, the court ruled that the building plans should be canceled, on the grounds that the state had not conducted a risk survey regarding soil contamination or the location of explosives.
The road winds between rusty fences, photo: Tal Ariel Yakir and Yaron Doron
Meanwhile, the area has become a magnet for deer, foxes and jackals. Their presence brought to the area hikers and jeep addicts, who crossed the hills and sandy paths. None of them imagined that an underground explosion could occur beneath the blue sky, dotted with colorful paragliders.
This pastoral atmosphere was interrupted last Thursday. At around 21:30 P.M., the explosion was heard, creating a crater 7 meters in diameter.
Fearing a leak of toxic gases, residents of the area were asked to close their windows. Some reported burning eyes. It is not yet clear why the explosion occurred now, and what material it was.
The gate is open to the area and there is access, Photo: Tal Ariel Yakir and Yaron Doron
We arrive at the scene in a jeep and stop at the southern gate of the IMI compound, confident that we will encounter police officers, inspectors, private security personnel, a warning sign or anything else imaginable. To our surprise, the rusty gate is wide open, and two private SUVs exit.
We approach it slowly, not believing that the place has been abandoned like this, confident that in a moment some security guard will jump out of the bushes and forbid us entry. Later it turned out that the police officers who guarded the place until Sunday were no longer here.
One of Hagai Yohanan's employees notices us and asks if we can help. "We're looking for the site of the explosion," we reply.
"Be careful, there could be secondary explosions," he warns, then adds humorously: "If something happens to you, we have enough plastic bags here to cover your bodies."
The road winds
As we pass the gate, the dense vegetation envelops us. Along narrow roads with broken asphalt, old concrete buildings or abandoned offices covered in graffiti are occasionally revealed, some creative and some reminiscent of Satan's cult. Inside one of the offices, smelling of droppings, it reads: "Soldier, improve your appearance." The broken window overlooks the houses of the Nof Yam neighborhood, which are close by.
Near the beach, photo: Tal Ariel Yakir and Yaron Doron
The winding road, surrounded by rusty fences with curls, leads our search to the environmental sculptures complex of Kibbutz Shefayim. On the way back, we suddenly discover a yellow bus hidden in the trees. There lives T., a young man who chose to stay away from the noise of the city and set up a cheapie for himself and his two dogs. "I heard the explosion," he says. "The dogs panicked and the bus shook. At first I thought it was a missile falling from Gaza, but I didn't hear an alarm. It was as if the ground was shaking inside. Then the police arrived and I thought it was a load of criminals."
It turns out Seth isn't alone. Further along the way, on one of the paths that curve into a dense grove, hides another cheapie. A fence with a surfboard prevents strangers from entering, as if anyone could even find this place again without getting lost. A look inside reveals a small horse farm.
We veer west and come across a steep gorge towards the sea, in the middle of which is an underground bunker, with only the upper part sticking out.
John. Alert the authorities, photo: Tal Ariel Yakir and Yaron Doron
A young couple climbs from the beach, through the gorge, towards the SUV waiting upstairs. "Maybe you saw the site of the explosion?" we try our luck. "Sure, we were there yesterday," surprises the guy, Eli. "Follow me, I'll take you there."
Sat on the cliff
When we stand on the edge of the crater, we ignore for a moment the bricks flying around and forget the potential for disaster. At first sight, the appearance of the site of the explosion - how to say gently - is impressive.
John comes opposite, bends down to the ground and strokes it. His eyes detect a small, yellow cylinder. "It's explosive stuff," he clutches the cylinder in his hand. "From talking to people who worked here in the past, I understood that this crater contained TNT explosives."
How did you find out about what happened?
"I heard the explosion myself, and I live in Modi'in. Our guests from the US were alarmed. At first I thought it was from the Adam facility, but then the phone calls started about the IMI compound. All the authorities had more than 25 years to clean the area, but no one did anything."
John continues to examine the area around him, and discovers what appears to be the entrance to the underground bunker. From the force of the explosion, the opening collapsed on itself, leaving the ground around it scorched and charred. "I can't believe people were sitting on the cliff at the time," he says. "It's a miracle they weren't hurt."
You didn't overcome curiosity either, despite the danger.
"I was sent here on behalf of Tel Aviv University, after an archaeological site was discovered under road works in Nof Yam. When I saw that the gate was open and there was no security, I was surprised and couldn't hold back. Come on, friends, let's leave. Once there was luck here, maybe next time it won't."
The Tel Aviv District Police said that security at the site after the explosion had nothing to do with them.
The Israel Land Authority responded: "The factory area was in the hands of the Ministry of Defense through IMI. With the privatization of the company, responsibility was transferred to Netzer Hasharon, which is under the responsibility of the Ministry of Defense. We refused to take over the area, since IMI did not undertake that the area was free of ammunition, and therefore it remained the responsibility of Netzer Hasharon."
Against this background, Netzer Hasharon said: "The area has been in the possession of the Israel Land Authority for many years, and it is the one that is solely responsible for what happens there. The state authorities decided that the authority must deal with the area, and to our attention it was brought to our attention that the authority has indeed contracted with the environmental services company."
The Defense Ministry explained: "The area is owned and under the responsibility of the Israel Land Authority. From the moment IMI became a government company more than 30 years ago, the authority and responsibility for the company's facilities ceased to belong to the Ministry of Defense. Even in 2018, when IMI ceased to be a government company and was privatized, it was explicitly determined that the Ministry of Defense would not be held liable for IMI complexes that were transferred to the responsibility of the Israel Land Authority."
The Herzliya Municipality responded: "Immediately after the incident – which to a large extent could have been a mass casualty disaster – the Israel Police demanded that the Israel Land Authority close the area and secure it. The authority did so until Sunday evening. In a letter from the municipality to the Prime Minister, we strongly demanded immediate action to hermetically fence the area. We haven't responded yet."
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