FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Wednesday night’s shooting of a young couple outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. is sparking security concerns across the country, including right here in South Florida.
“So the first thought is ‘Here we go again.’ In my business, generally we make the assumption every day, proactively, that something is going to happen that day,” Zalman Myer-Smith told Local 10 News.
Myer-Smith runs security for the Jewish organization Chabad of Florida. He says they have protocols in place to deal with every and any scenario.
His biggest fear? Copy-cat events.
“We know in this incident in Washington that we are still learning more about, there was no one on the outside to evaluate that there was a guy walking up and down. That was something that was very reactive -- proactive security would have identified that,” he said.
The Jewish community in South Florida is on edge following the deadly shooting of two Israeli embassy staff members outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D. C.
“When we see how much evil and darkness there is around us -- to respond with unity and with more light,” Rabbi Chaim Slavaticki told Local 10 News.
Slavaticki spoke to Local 10 shortly after he met with officers from the Fort Lauderdale Police Department about upgrading security at the center.
“There’s definitely a lot of fear,” he said. “There’s definitely a lot of concern … everybody should feel safe to come and worship.”
“Every day we wake up thinking ‘Is today the day something’s going to happen?’ And that’s why in the Jewish community, we take security very seriously,” Audra Berg, President of the Jewish Federation of Broward County, said.
With Shabbat starting Friday when the sun goes down, out of an abundance of caution, heightened security in and around Jewish neighborhoods will continue throughout the weekend.
“You shouldn’t have any reticence at all, any doubts that you can save lives. It’s a cliché, it’s a great slogan, it’s very much used, but if you do see anything that’s off, that doesn’t make any sense, make that call because it could literally save lives,” Myer-Smith said.
“I call upon everyone -- wherever you see hate, to stand up to it,” Ayellet Black, the Deputy Consul General of Israel in Miami, said.
Local Jewish leaders say it’s up to all of us to take care of one another, to speak up when you see something concerning, and to show solidarity to your Jewish community members.
