Africa04 October, 20262 min read
Ahmed Ragab, 25, Catches Child After Balcony Fall in Giza, Egypt
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Ahmed Ragab, 25, saved a child who fell from a balcony in Ard El-Lewa, Giza. A video captured Ragab's rapid intervention, which went viral online.
9 outlets told this the same way.
Balcony fall in Giza
A child fell from a balcony in Giza, Egypt, and Ahmed Ragab, 25, rushed to intercept the boy before he hit the ground. An Al Jazeera report said the boy first hit a washing line, giving Ragab “a split-second more to miraculously save the kid from hitting the ground.”
An Annahar report said Ragab described the seconds between the child’s fall and his catching him as “as if time had stopped,” while he focused on reaching the child before he hit the ground. A Khaleej Times account said the boy was around four years old and that Ragab saw the child tangled by the washing line before falling from the balcony of the second floor.
Ragab explains the rescue
Ahmed Ragab told Gulf News that he “didn't think about myself,” and he said he moved instinctively because he could not stand by and watch a child fall without trying to save him. Ahmed Ragab told Khaleej Times that he had “no time to think or calculate the risks,” and he said “All what was on my mind was to try to save this child before he hits the ground”.
Ahmed Ragab said he had been out buying something when he heard shouting and crying and looked towards the building, according to Gulf News. Ahmed Ragab urged parents to keep a close watch on young children and warned against placing chairs or other objects near balconies and windows, as Gulf News and Khaleej Times both described.
Video goes viral
CNN said a shop owner was hailed as a hero for catching a child falling from a balcony in a densely populated Egyptian neighborhood, after a video capturing the moment went viral. Ecuavisa said the incident occurred in the Ard El Lewa residential area of Giza Province and that the rescue was recorded on video and later began circulating on social media.
Elsiyasa said surveillance recordings showed the child hanging from the balcony before the young man rushed into action within seconds to catch the child and embrace him before he hit the ground. Ecuavisa said emergency services evaluated both the man and the child after the rescue, while it also said no detailed medical report had been released to precisely establish the child’s health status.