By Muhammed Aladdin
Last Wednesday, tragedy struck Egypt as a deadly explosion followed by an untamable fire at Ramses Railway Station claimed the lives of 20 Egyptians and injured more than 40. The country plunged into mourning after videos of the incident circulated social media; the horror was unimaginable. However, at such a dark moment, when many ran for their lives, Waleed Mordy stepped between the unruly flames.
Indeed, not all heroes wear capes; the 17-year railway station clerk was minding his business at a platform kiosk when suddenly a roaring sound of explosion deafened him. He stood there for a minute, trying to get a hold of what was happening. Turning towards the platform, he saw the unthinkable; a 10-meter long fire devouring everyone and everything in its way.
“I saw people who were caught on fire running past me, so of course, I stood there for a second in utter shock,” he stated in an interview with ON TV. “So, I ran to grab a big bucket of water from my kiosk. We all have water tanks in our kiosks because we use it to make tea and other warm drinks,” he continued.
Waleed Mordy courageously ran to the heart of the fire with a bucket of water and a blanket patting down people who were on fire to put out the flames. Three of his colleagues followed suit, and together, they saved more than 15 people from burning alive.
The Ramses Railway Station hero told news stations that he did this because it was a “moral obligation”, and that “anyone in his place would have done the same”, but in reality, when most ran away from the fire, a few led by Waleed ran towards it.
“In the beginning, I didn’t feel anything because I wanted to save people. But afterward, I sat down for a minute and thought about what happened, and I started losing my temper,” Waleed added. “I started wondering what happened and how it happened.”
“Some people died right in front of me, but I couldn’t help them. Those who died were very close to the fire. We were only able to save those who were farther from the core of the fire,” he explained.
The tragedy of the Ramses explosion brought the Egyptian people together; many unsung heroes rushed to hospitals in need of blood bags to donate. Mohamed Nasser, a Technical Advisor at the Central Blood Bank of the Egyptian Red Crescent, stated that hospitals in a short period of time received an unprecedented amount of blood donations that was enough to help the injured and prepare for another emergency.