Latest news with #KhaledElgamal
Global News
25-06-2025
- General
- Global News
Brother of Alberta rock slide victim speaks about family's grief
He was the first one to wake up at 7 a.m. that fateful morning, saying, 'Let's get going, you don't want to be late.' Twenty-eight-year-old Khaled Elgamal recounted the excitement of his friend, 33-year-old Hamza Benhilal, ahead of their planned hike into Bow Glacier Falls, in Banff National Park, about 40 km north of Lake Louise, last Thursday, June 19, 2025. Fatefully, a third friend decided to stay behind and not go with the two men, who were visiting from Surrey, B.C. 'We started the hike — we took dozens of pictures,' said Elgamal. View image in full screen A photo of Hazma Benhilal (left) and Khaled Elgaml (right) at Bow Lake, the start of their hike into Bow Glacier Falls, on Thursday, June 19, 2025. Courtesy: Khaled Elgamal 'He (Benhilal) was very happy. We were talking to everybody passing by along the hike, saying hi, chatting about how was the waterfall, it was just a happy day for both of us,' added Elgamal. Story continues below advertisement 'We decided to climb up the mountain a little closer to the waterfall to take some photos from a better angle. We wanted to send them to our families back home. Then shortly after, we heard it very loud — it just looks like the mountain is falling apart. I saw a bunch of big rocks slamming the ground and rolling towards us,' said Elgamal. A large part of the mountain at the base of the falls gave way, around 1:30 p.m. Benhilal was killed by the falling rocks and Elgamal was forced to run for his life. He suffered a a broken pelvis and broken shoulder and had to be medevaced to hospital in Calgary. Elgamal credits his late friend for saving his life by yelling at him to run when the rocks began to slide. 1:46 Bow Glacier Falls rock slide witness calls scene 'pretty chaotic' Benhilal, from Morocco and Elgamal, from Egypt, met while studying online during the pandemic and eventually both came to work in Canada, where they became good friends and roommates. Story continues below advertisement 'My friend was like my brother, we pretty much lived together, supported each other, we were like each other's family,' said Elgamal. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'I was in shock hearing the news (of his death). I was trying to grasp any hope that he made it out.' 'I was very sad. I remember I was even crying while I was being transported,' added Elgamal. View image in full screen 33-year-old Hazma Benhilal sits on the rocks in front of Bow Glacier Falls where a short time later a large part of the mountain gave way, taking his life. Courtesy: Khaled Elgamal Two people were killed in the slide. The body of 70-year-old Jutta Hinrichs, a retired university professor from Calgary, was recovered on Thursday. But search and rescue workers were unable to recover Benhilal's body from underneath the rubble until Friday morning, because the area was deemed too unstable. Story continues below advertisement View image in full screen A helicopter at the rock slide site near Bow Lake on Friday, June 20, 2025. Parks Canada On Tuesday, Benhilal's older brother arrived in Calgary to take his brother's body back to Morocco. Mohamed Benhilal said his brother, who moved to Surrey in 2022, loved Canada. 'He liked it so much,' said Benhilal, who added that his brother tried hard to convince other family members to come visit. 'He want the family to come here to see how beautiful Canada is — people he's saying are friendly — you can see smiles in the faces of people all the time. He liked the place very much.' View image in full screen Hamza Benhilal, seen here at the start of his hike into Bow Glacier Falls, 'liked Canada so much' said his older brother. Benhilal was originally from Morocco but moved to Canada in 2022. Courtesy: Khaled Elgamal Mohamed Benhilal managed to secure a visa to visit his brother in Canada a year ago, but hadn't used it — until he got news of his brother's death. Story continues below advertisement 'Friends called (but) I thought at first it was just spam or something. After I got the real (news) what happened, I had to say to myself that's the truth, this is the reality. I had to accept it, but his death is very shocking. For days we don't sleep or understand — all the memories of him come along.' View image in full screen On Tuesday, Mohamed Benhilal arrived in Calgary to take the body of his late brother back home to his family in Morocco. Global News Benhilal said his brother 'liked to travel — to try new things.' He also 'left a great impression on people.' 'He was just perfect. I mean he is (always) helpful. You need help — I can do that — he lives for people,' added Benhilal. View image in full screen 33-year-old Hamza Benhilal sits on rocks in front of the mountain at Bow Glacier Falls where, a short time later, a massive rock slide would take his life. Courtesy: Khaled Elgamal It is a sentiment shared by Elgamal who described his late friend as 'a very kind and caring person.' Story continues below advertisement 'He was never self-centred or showed any ego or anything like that. He would always support people; (it would) bring him satisfaction, just putting a smile on people's face,' said Elgamal. 'I've seen it myself many times — even when we played tennis and sometimes he would be coaching some beginners, and he would tell them, 'You're doing a great job.' He's always telling them keep going, stuff like that.' As the elder brother in the family, and the only one who already had a visa, Mohamed Benhilal was designated as the person to make the arrangements to return his brother's body to his family. 'I had to come here because my dad or mother or brothers, they can't — so I am the one who needs to do this job,' said Mohamed Benhilal. ' That's a small thing to do for my dead brother — the death of my brother. If they didn't find the body, that would be worse. Aat least they found the body; it will relieve (us) a little bit.' But getting the body back to Morocco will be expensive. The cost is estimated at about $13,000, so family and friends have set up a GoFundMe campaign to help raise the money. 'We're hopeful to catch some good hearts,' said Benhilal. 'Some good deeds from people who know the situation of this tragic death.' Story continues below advertisement 2:14 Friends, colleagues remember woman killed in Bow Glacier Falls rock slide
CBC
25-06-2025
- CBC
Survivor of Banff rockfall says friend who died saved him
A survivor of a rockfall last week in Banff National Park says his 33-year-old roommate Hamza Benhilal, who didn't make it out alive from under the rubble, warned him of the falling rocks and saved his life. Khaled Elgamal, 28, of Surrey, B.C., remembered his friend's last moments at Bow Glacier Falls, about 200 kilometres northwest of Calgary.
National Post
24-06-2025
- National Post
'He saved me': Banff rockfall survivor pays tribute to friend who died on Bow Glacier Falls trail
A survivor of a rockfall last week in Banff National Park is remembering his 33-year-old roommate, who didn't make it out alive from under the rubble, as a kind and generous friend. Article content Khaled Elgamal says Hamza Benhilal of Surrey, B.C., was one of two people who died after a slab of mountain gave way Thursday, raining rock down on hikers at Bow Glacier Falls, about 200 kilometres northwest of Calgary. Article content Article content 'He was my friend but also like my big brother,' Elgamal, 28, said in an interview Monday from a hospital bed in Calgary. He is recovering from a fractured pelvis and shoulder, cuts and scrapes. Article content Article content 'I'm still shocked,' said Elgamal. 'I'm still getting flashbacks of the scene.' Article content He said he met Benhilal in 2022 when they were enrolled in the same online master of business administration program at University Canada West. Article content Elgamal was living in Egypt and Benhilal was in Morocco. They both moved to B.C. in 2022 and became housemates. Article content Elgamal, now a financial adviser, and Benhilal, an engineer, had just arrived in Banff for a vacation and a hotel worker recommended they visit Bow Glacier Falls, as the site's parking lot is usually less crowded. Article content 'We didn't even have it on our bucket list for that day. We were planning to go to Lake Louise,' Elgamal said. Article content He said a third friend on the trip decided to stay behind at the hotel, and he and Benhilal drove to the falls. Article content 'We took a bunch of pictures at the lake first and then started the hike to the waterfall.' Article content Article content Article content Article content 'It sounded like a thunderstorm.' Article content When he turned around, Elgamal said he saw a large boulder fall from the mountain and shatter into pieces when it hit the ground. Article content Benhilal was in front of him and screamed at Elgamal to run. Article content 'He saved me by screaming,' Elgamal said. 'I froze like a deer in headlights.' Article content Elgamal said he turned and ran a few steps, and a rock hit his feet and he fell to the ground. He looked up and saw his friend for the last time running and eventually disappearing in the dust. Article content Elgamal said he was in and out of consciousness on the ground as stones hit his head and body. 'Every time a rock was hitting me, I was blacking out.' Article content 'I was bleeding and looking around,' he said. He then forced himself to get up.
CBC
24-06-2025
- CBC
'Like my big brother': Survivor of Banff rockfall says friend who died saved him
A survivor of a rockfall last week in Banff National Park is remembering his 33-year-old roommate, who didn't make it out alive from under the rubble, as a kind and generous friend. Khaled Elgamal, 28, says Hamza Benhilal, of Surrey, B.C., was one of two people who died after a slab of mountain gave way last Thursday, raining rock down on hikers at Bow Glacier Falls, about 200 kilometres northwest of Calgary. "He was my friend but also like my big brother," Elgamal said Monday in an interview with The Canadian Press from a hospital bed in Calgary. He is recovering from a fractured pelvis and shoulder, cuts and scrapes. "I'm still shocked," said Elgamal. "I'm still getting flashbacks of the scene." He said he met Benhilal in 2022 when they were enrolled in the same online master of business administration program at University Canada West. Elgamal was living in Egypt, and Benhilal was in Morocco. They both moved to B.C. in 2022 and became housemates. Elgamal, now a financial adviser, and Benhilal, an engineer, had just arrived in Banff for a vacation, and a hotel worker recommended they visit Bow Glacier Falls, as the site's parking lot is usually less crowded. "We didn't even have it on our bucket list for that day. We were planning to go to Lake Louise," Elgamal said. He said a third friend on the trip decided to stay behind at the hotel, and he and Benhilal drove to the falls. "We took a bunch of pictures at the lake first and then started the hike to the waterfall." Shortly afterward, while still on the mountain, Elgamal said they heard a loud sound. "It sounded like a thunderstorm." When he turned around, Elgamal said he saw a large boulder fall from the mountain and shatter into pieces when it hit the ground. Benhilal was in front of him and screamed at Elgamal to run. "He saved me by screaming," Elgamal said. "I froze like a deer in headlights." Elgamal said he turned and ran a few steps, and a rock hit his feet, and he fell to the ground. He looked up and saw his friend for the last time, running and eventually disappearing in the dust. Elgamal said he was in and out of consciousness on the ground as stones hit his head and body. "Every time a rock was hitting me, I was blacking out." The slide eventually stopped, and Elgamal stayed on the ground, breathing heavily. "I was bleeding and looking around," he said. He then forced himself to get up. With a bleeding head, wobbly legs and in severe pain, Elgamal said he made his way through the dust and down the mountain. He slipped on some wet stones on his way down but continued following the sound of others screaming at the base. Other hikers came running to him and told him to lie down and breathe, and they put their jackets on him. "I was soaked in blood and barely managing myself," he said, adding he vomited a few times. "It was the most painful experience I've had." Elgamal told the others that he couldn't find his friend. He learned on Saturday that Benhilal was killed. Parks Canada said the body was recovered from the rubble on Friday. Another hiker, Jutta Hinrichs, a 70-year-old retired university professor from Calgary, was found dead at the site the day of the rockfall. The area around the falls remained closed Monday and Parks Canada said nothing could have prevented or predicted the rockfall. The Bow Glacier Falls hiking trail is a nine-kilometre route that runs along the edges of Bow Lake and is used by tourists and day-trippers. Elgamal said hospital workers have told him he will likely be discharged in the coming days. He said Benhilal's mother and one of his five brothers are set to arrive in Alberta this week to arrange his funeral. Elgamal said he can't believe his friend is gone, and he has been having nightmares about the rockfall every night since it happened.
CBC
23-06-2025
- Climate
- CBC
'He was like my big brother': Friend identifies second victim of Bow Glacier Falls rockfall
Social Sharing A survivor of a rockfall last week in Banff National Park is remembering his 33-year-old roommate and friend who didn't make it out alive from under the rubble. Khaled Elgamal, 28, of Surrey, B.C., says Hamza Benhilal was one of two people who died after a slab of mountain gave way last Thursday, raining rock down on hikers at Bow Glacier Falls, about 200 kilometres northwest of Calgary. In an interview with The Canadian Press, Elgamal said he was visiting Banff with Benhilal, an engineer, when they heard the loud sound of rocks dislodging. They began running to safety but did not get out of the way in time. He said he was crushed by the chunks of rock and is recovering in a Calgary hospital from a fractured pelvis and shoulder. Benhilal did not survive. "He was very kind, generous and very supportive," Elgamal said in an interview Monday. "He was like my big brother. He always had a smile on his face. He was very open to the world because he had travelled so much." Benhilal is one of two hikers who died in the rockfall. The other person was identified last week as 70-year-old Jutta Hinrichs, a retired university professor from Calgary. Parks Canada has closed the area around the falls and has said nothing could have prevented or predicted the rockfall. The Bow Glacier Falls hiking trail is a nine-kilometre route running along the edges of Bow Lake. It is considered a moderate challenge for hikers and is used by tourists and day-trippers, including families.
