Bodies of Romania crash victims identified

 ROMANIA – IDF rabbinate representatives completed the process of identifying the six bodies of the IDF soldiers who lost their lives in the helicopter crash in Romania. The victims’ families have been notified.

Earlier, members of Rescue Unit 669 recounted the harsh terrain and weather conditions and difficult emotions they endured during the search for their comrades.

The air force is ready to fly the bodies home, apparently within a few hours. The funeral dates are expected to be announced later.

The searches continued over the last 24 hours, leaving rescuers exhausted at the crash site. "We had to go back and forth over the site to find all remains," said one officer. "It was impossible to stand on the steep slope, so we used ropes."

The rescuers said the weather was poor. On Wednesday afternoon torrential rain fell, making their work even harder. In order to reach the crash site, the unit’s members, numbering some 50 soldiers, had to climb for an hour and a half from where they had been dropped off by the helicopter.

 "It was a hard physical effort, combined with a desire to get to the site and start work," the officer said.

 "We had to climb in a stream bed," a team member told Ynet. "We took ladders to climb over the waterfalls and used ropes to avoid slipping on the rocks. We covered an area of some 80 meters by 30 meters (260 x 98 feet), on a slope of 60%, so in many places it was impossible to stand. We spread ropes over the whole area, and in some places worked while harnessed to the ropes. Every few minutes there was a downpour which completely soaked us."