Fundraiser created for Israeli boy who lost parents in accident in Italy
Eitan Biran, a five-year-old from Israel who was living in Italy, was the only survivor of the crash. His parents, brother and great-grandparents died in the accident.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFA helicopter flies over the site where a cable car connecting Maggiore lake with a mountain close by collapsed, in Stresa, Italy, May 23, 2021.(photo credit: REUTERS/FLAVIO LO SCALZO)
A Jewish charity based in the United Kingdom has set up a fundraising page for the lone survivor of the cable car crash that killed 14 people, including 5 Israelis, in Italy on Sunday.A cable car linking Italy’s Lake Maggiore with a nearby mountain plunged 20 meters to the ground, killing the 14 passengers.Eitan Biran, a five-year-old from Israel who was living in Italy, was the only survivor of the crash. His parents, brother and great-grandparents died in the accident.In light of the tragic news, GIFT created a crowdfunding page to raise money for the newly orphaned child, in the hopes they can set him up financially for the rest of his life.The page was organized in collaboration with the Milan Jewish Community School, where Eitan's father, Amit Biran, worked as a security guard while working towards his medical degree."GIFT's mission is to encourage and facilitate giving and if we can set up this platform to encourage support for this little boy who has tragically lost his immediate family, then it is an honor for us to do so," said founding director of GIFT Michelle Barnett.Italian Jewish institutions have also started a fundraising campaign to help Eitan. The English fundraising page "was set up to make it possible for those outside of Italy to donate to Eitan and help support him financially for the future without his parents," a representative for GIFT said.On Tuesday afternoon, Italian doctors at the Regina Margherita Hospital in Turin began the process of waking up Eitan, after he was rushed into surgery to treat head and thoracic traumas and multiple fractures in his legs.“He had a peaceful night and his conditions are stable,” said Giovanni La Valle, director of Città della Salute, the health complex that includes the Regina Margherita Hospital, according to the Italian daily La Repubblica.“For this reason, the medical team initiated the process of awakening him through the gradual reduction of the medicines that are keeping him sedated. It will take some time to see some response.”La Valle added that the hospital’s psychologists are working with the anesthesiologists to be ready to care for the child when he wakes up.The boy’s aunt Aya Biran, also a doctor, who lives in Italy with her husband and their two daughters, is at the side of the child, together with her parents and other relatives who came from Israel.Eitan’s family has asked everyone to respect their privacy and to pray for the boy.Rosella Tercatin contributed to this report.
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