The Iron Dome, although effective, is extremely expensive. It senses whenever a rocket is fired into the State of Israel and calculates where it will land. It then sends out a rocket to hit the attacking rocket mid-air before it hits the ground. Each rocket fired to protect the state costs about $25,000, and it has been decided that they will only be sent out if the attacking rocket was aimed at a place where people lived or stayed at.
Today we were told that the town of Sderot was not protected by the Iron Dome because it was too close to the Gaza Strip, and the Iron Dome could only protect areas that were 4km or more away from Gaza. So how do the civilians protect themselves against enemy attacks?
We travelled around Sderot today and had a tour to see bomb shelters that were built around the town in a short running distances from each other so that the civilians had somewhere to hide away from the rockets. The shelters were very strong. We were told they were made of steel and concrete, and that there was a siren to warn people who were walking around outside about the approaching rockets. When the siren was sounded, people have about 10-15 seconds to get to the nearest bomb shelter before the rocket hit.
I was curious to see the inside of a shelter and to know what it looked and felt like to be in one, so with a couple other members of my Cohort and I went inside. As soon as I stepped in I was overwhelmed with the nasty smell of rot, pee and smoke. There were some unidentifiable things smeared on the walls and floor, and there was an old T-shirt and shorts lying on the ground. The sight was disturbing. But on the other hand, we were told this condition was the result of disuse. Although the danger has not disappeared, the situation has become far less dangerous and the residents of Sderot are beginning to feel more confident in their long term protection.