[COMMUNICATED]Smoke filled the sky in the Sorotzkin neighborhood of Jerusalem last month, as the Vital family’s home was swiftly destroyed by flames.Sara Vizal, mother of 7, had been home with the kids when she hard an explosion in the living room. Their air conditioning unit had burst into flames, causing an uncontrollable fire to spread through the living area. Miraculously, no exits were blocked and the family, including the wheelchair-bound father, was able to escape alive.
“The entire house totally went on fire,” says Sara in moving video footage. “Our clothes, the washing machine, everything. We are left with absolutely nothing.”
By the time the fire department arrived on the scene, the blaze had destroyed everything but the clothes on their backs. The 7 Vizal children, the youngest of which is only 2 years old, were homeless.
In the weeks that have passed the family has been split into groups, to live among relatives who have offered couches and guest rooms for them to sleep in. They borrow everything from family, as each morning the children are forced to go to school without clothing, shoes, or backpacks of their own.
Sara has started a campaign to re-unite her family. This can only be done if they are somehow able to afford necessities such as another apartment, furniture, appliances, clothing, food, and childcare so that Sara can return to work.