"A millimeter from paralysis": The senior doctor who survived the helicopter crash in Rafah speaks out
Dr. Eyal Heyman tells about the incident in which he was seriously wounded in Gaza, the long and complex rehabilitation process, and the faith and insights that strengthened him after the disaster.
On the night between September 11 and 12, 2024, Dr. Eyal Heyman's life changed in an instant. The senior pediatrician, who chose to volunteer as a flight doctor in Unit 669, found himself at the heart of one of the most difficult disasters of the Iron Swords War. The crash of the "Yanshuf" helicopter in Rafah, caused by difficult visibility conditions and loss of orientation in a thick dust cloud, claimed the lives of two of his team members - Staff Sergeant (res.) Daniel Alloush and Staff Sergeant (res.) Tom Ish-Shalom. In a raw and emotional interview, Dr. Heyman recounts the moment of horror, talks about the severe spinal injury, and explains how he chose to grow from the abyss.
The great miracle in the heart of Gaza
The tragic event occurred during an urgent rescue mission for a seriously wounded person in Rafah. Dr. Heyman, who was in the midst of intense standby with the team, recalls the final minutes before the disaster: "The last thing I remember is myself by the door of the helicopter, ready on call with a bag on my back, weapon, helmet, doctor's bag, and vest. That's it, I don't remember anything."
An IDF investigation found that the crash was not caused by enemy fire, but by human error resulting from a loss of spatial orientation. The helicopter crashed to the ground, and the fact that the helicopter did not catch fire and that rescue forces arrived quickly saved their lives.
At Soroka Hospital, the severity of the injury became clear. Beyond numerous injuries to his body, Dr. Heyman suffered a severe blow to the cervical spinal cord. "There was edema in the spinal cord. They told us: a millimeter from this, a millimeter and I would have been paralyzed. The disc between C5 and C6 in the vertebrae was crushed... In the first days, I didn't understand what was happening to me. I couldn't move my hands, with pains that cannot be described."
The war in the head
Despite the intense pains and a grueling rehabilitation period that lasted many long months and later included a complex surgery to fix vertebrae using plates by Prof. Zvi Lidar, Dr. Heyman testifies that the biggest war took place in the head. He emphasizes that the constant support of the family, the community, and friends, who stayed by his side day and night for the first month and a half, was a true mental salvation for him that prevented severe post-trauma.
As someone who knows the medical system in depth, the injury gave him a completely new perspective on his work as a caregiver: "I learned what it is to be a patient. I walked around in a wheelchair, it's hard. I learned what teamwork is, physiotherapists, occupational therapists... I definitely learned what empathy is," he says.
Today, despite the changes he had to make in his work in the pediatric emergency room and in managing the department due to physical limitations, Dr. Heyman looks forward with optimism. From his point of view, the very fact that he remained alive is a gift like no other.
He chooses to conclude his story with a message about the meaning of service on the battlefield and the living memory of his fallen friends: "The message that needs to be taken from here is that a fighter in a war is a fighter in a war with everything that implies. There is no such thing as died for nothing, there is no such thing as a battlefield. A battlefield is a battlefield in every sense... I believe that I grew from this whole process, from the faith, from the support, and from the personal providence."
