Bergen County woman in Israel during attacks returns to U.S.

While in Israel for a wedding, Englewood resident Laurie Bader says she was awoken in her hotel room by the sound of sirens and a loudspeaker announcement instructing guests to proceed to safe rooms.

News 12 Staff

Oct 8, 2023, 4:46 PM

Updated 421 days ago

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A Bergen County woman who was in Israel when Hamas launched an attack against the country Saturday has returned to the U.S.
While in Israel for a wedding, Englewood resident Laurie Bader says she was awoken in her hotel room by the sound of sirens and a loudspeaker announcement instructing guests to proceed to safe rooms.
"It's a bomb shelter, basically, they call [a] safe room. There's one on every floor of the hotel," she said. "A few hours later, the siren went off again and everyone was advised to just stay in the hotel all day and not leave, so we did. We stayed in the hotel all day and then tonight, it went off three times. We were in the safe room again three times."
Thousands of rockets were fired from Gaza across southern and central Israel, including Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, where Bader was visiting. She said that there was a stark difference in Tel Aviv since she first touched down.
"Everything was fine. No indication that anything was happening. It was a beautiful day, very busy, and vibrant as always in Tel Aviv," she said.
Israel has since launched strikes on targets in Gaza and confirmed an official declaration of war. Hezbollah also fired dozens of rockets at northern Israel Sunday.