Mecca crane tragedy: 'We accept mum's death as fate' - Zainun's children

Upon learning from her mother’s roommate that their mother was one of the casualties in the deadly Mecca crane tragedy at the Grand Mosque last Friday, Zainun Taha’s children accepted her demise as fate.

Noor Farehah when met by Astro AWANI today said that the news was conveyed to her family by Tabung Haji (TH) early Monday morning at 2.40am.

“It was at the second press conference at TH Hotel in Kelana Jaya that TH announced the three victims’ names and one of them was my mother’s roommate and we instinctively knew that our mother could also be one of the casualties.

“We accept our mum's demise as fate. The family is relieved to receive the news two days since the tragedy happened. We are now preparing for mother’s burial there (Mecca),” said Noor Farehah, when met at her family’s residence in Bukit Antarabangsa in Ampang, Selangor today.

Selangor Menteri Besar Mohamed Azmin Ali had reportedly expressed the state government’s readiness to bear all expenses for the siblings to travel to Mecca for their mother’s burial and the opportunity to perform their Hajj.

The siblings are expected to leave for Mecca on the last flight before September 19.

Mecca

The tragedy killed 107 people at the Grand Mosque, one of Islam's holiest sites and injured 238 individuals from various countries. - File Photo

Zainun, 69 from Maktab 90 Al-Wafideen was identified by her relative who suffered an injury during the tragedy. She was survived by four children and 11 grandchildren.

The accident killed 107 people and injured 238 individuals including Malaysians, Iranians, Turks, Afghans, Egyptians and Pakistanis.

The crane which collapsed during a thunderstorm with extremely high winds was one of several working on a multi-billion-dollar expansion of the mosque to accommodate mounting numbers of faithful. PHOTOS: Crane collapse at Grand Mosque, Mecca