A body being removed from the scene of Sunday’s terrorist attack in Jerusalem. Photo: ZAKA.

The scene of Sunday’s deadly truck-ramming attack in Jerusalem in which four IDF soldiers were killed by an Arab terrorist was one of “complete mayhem,” a first responder told The Algemeiner hours after the incident.

“There was a lot of shouting and screaming,” United Hatzalah EMT Dovi Meyer — who arrived at the Armon Hanatziv promenade just minutes following the attack — recounted. “There were over 100 soldiers there. We did triage to see who was really injured and who was going through traumatic shock and stress. We treated more than a dozen people who were transported to a hospital and we worked tirelessly on the four individuals [who died] — three who were pinned underneath the vehicle and one who was hit head-on. Advanced life support was performed, but unfortunately they had to be declared dead at the scene.”

“I saw four dead soldiers in their 20s,” Meyer continued. “I’m a similar age, 21, and to see life taken before your eyes so quickly and mercilessly, there are no words really.  I’m going to have a difficult time sleeping tonight, but tomorrow we’ll get up and keep doing what we’re doing, because if not us, then who?”

Yossi Fraenkel — deputy commander of ZAKA Jerusalem — told The Algemeiner that 15 people were wounded in the attack — one seriously, four moderately and ten lightly.

“The streets have reopened, but we are still clearing the scene, doing forensics and collecting remains,” he said around four hours after the attack took place.

“We never compare terrorist attacks,” Fraenkel added. “Every terrorist attack is different in its own way. But it was quite difficult to see those who were serving our country to fight to save us and have to deal with them in such a situation.”

In a statement, Bentzi Oering — the commander of ZAKA Jerusalem — said the site of the attack “looked like a battlefield.”

ZAKA Jerusalem’s Operations Commander Meir Akar stated, “A crane from the firefighters helped us lift the front part of truck so that we could free those trapped underneath. Tragically, they were no longer alive. A team from the forensics department of the Israel Police and ZAKA carried out the initial identification of the dead. ZAKA then removed the bodies of the four victims and the terrorist. Another ZAKA team remains at the scene to clear the significant amount of blood and remains to bring them to burial.”

Rabbi Ya’acov Roget — the head of the ZAKA Rabbinic Council — told ZAKA volunteers they could drink water as needed if the Tenth of Tevet fast was interfering with their functioning.