Heroic Engineer Sacrifices Life to Save Friend in Deadly Banff Landslide
Hamza Benhilal, 33, died saving his Egyptian roommate and friend from a horrible landslide in a Canadian national park.
Khaled El Gamal, 28, a financial advisor, will remember this hike in Banff National Park that took his Moroccan friend and roommate Hamza Benhilal, 33, an engineer. On Thursday, as the two young men were walking on the trail to Bow Glacier Falls around 1:30 pm, a torrential rain began to fall on the hiking trail. "It looked like a storm," El Gamal said from his hospital bed to the National Post. As the landslide was heading towards them, Benhilal, who was in front of him, heroically yelled at his friend to flee - knowing it was too late for himself.
El Gamal followed his friend’s advice and rushed as far away as he could from a rock. This tragically killed his friend. The Egyptian was then struck by a stone, causing him to fall. As he collapsed, he saw Benhilal for the last time before disappearing into the dust and debris. "He saved me by yelling," El Gamal recounted. "I was frozen like a deer in the headlights." When the terror ended, he carefully found the strength to emerge from the ruins. "I was soaked in blood and had trouble getting around," he said. "It was the most intense pain I’ve ever felt."
Once out of danger, El Gamal reported to the people who welcomed him that his friend had disappeared. On Friday, search teams scoured the trail looking for the victims’ bodies. They were able to recover Benhilal and the body of another victim, Jutta Hinrichs, a 70-year-old retired educator. According to the authorities, Benhilal and Hinrichs are the only victims who died in this disastrous incident.
"We believe everyone has been identified and accounted for," RCMP Corporal Gina Slaney told Daily Mail.
