Victim of a shooting in New York: Benkada delivers his testimony

A national of Algerian nationality distinguished himself by performing a heroic and courageous act during the shooting that took place on Tuesday April 12, 2022 in a Brooklyn neighborhood in New York. Houari Benkada, 27, indeed risked his life to rescue a pregnant woman. He was injured on the spot.

Tuesday morning, the district of Brooklyn in New York was upset by a shooting perpetrated by an unknown within a subway station. This shooting left 23 injured, including this Algerian who was hit in the knee.

Waking up at dawn that day, Houari took his suhoor with his mom, to begin a new day of work as well as the Ramadan fast. The young man joined, shortly after 8 am, the station which is a few streets from his home, to go to his work. A graduate of the United States, Houari Benkada is in charge of the maintenance of the famous New Yorker Hotel, located on 8th Avenue, in the heart of Manhattan.

This young Algerian follows his routine and climbs into the second carriage of train N, where there is no crowd. Houari remembers getting on the seat, phone in hand, near a man whose face he didn’t know “The guy was next to me, but I didn’t see his face,” he said. noted. Later, he will discover that he was the one who sat closest to the shooter.

His only reflex was to protect a pregnant woman

The train is approaching street 36 when an explosion of smoke reaches the car. Houari remembers that a woman close to him cried out that she was pregnant and that the reflex to protect her came to him, before falling into a human tide and receiving a bullet in the knee. “A dozen shots were fired. I think the gun got stuck. I think he had an extended clip or something because I’ve never heard so many shots coming out of a handgun. It sounded like the loudest thing I’ve ever heard in my life,” he said.

Still shaken, Benkada added “I don’t even know how I’m holding my phone”, “I’m afraid it will happen again”. In shock, the young man managed to get out of the metro in the middle of the other injured, limping, then dragged to the exit to be taken care of by the firefighters.

Houari Benkada is recovering from this most recent adventure, fighting relentless pain and undergoing therapy. As for his sister, she appealed for donations since he does not receive compensation during his professional absence. Supported by his family, he tries to overcome the drama and regain his strength, despite the trauma.

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