Remember The Highland Towers 'Miracle Baby'? She's Back To Meet Her Heroes After 23 Years
She was meeting her rescuers for the first time since the tragic incident in 1993.
After 23 years, Nur Hamidah Nadjib, who survived the 1993 Highland Towers incident, has returned to Malaysia from Surabaya, Indonesia to reunite with her rescuers yesterday, 28 March
Nur Hamidah, 24, who was rescued when she was just 18 months old, was reunited with one of her rescuers, Tan Sri Zaman Khan Rahim Khan, in a special interview with TV9 at Sri Pentas yesterday morning.
Also present were Nur Hamidah's mother, Umi Rasyidah Khoiruman, 43, the only other survivor of the tragedy, and Fire and Rescue Department Senior Supt II Norizan Saad, the rescuer who received Nur Hamidah from Zaman Khan.
Zaman Khan was then the federal police Criminal Investigation Department director.
Nur Hamidah, who is popularly known as a 'miracle baby', and Tan Sri Zaman Khan were meeting each other for the first time since that fateful day
Zaman Khan was one of the first people to hold Nur Hamidah after she was rescued from the ruins of the collapsed luxury condominium block on Dec 11, 1993, which killed 48 people.
"I am grateful that I finally got to meet her again," Zaman Khan told Bernama here Monday, 28 March.
Zaman Khan said he had tried several times to find the 'miracle baby', including contacting the Indonesian Embassy, but failed.
“If there were no pictures (viral pictures of Zaman Khan holding Nur Hamidah up high), she might not even remember what happened. Although she was trapped in the rubble, there were no bruises or visible injuries on her body and she did not cry,” he said.
nst.com.myIt was a heartwarming and emotional reunion for the both of them, as Nur Hamidah repeatedly said “thank you” to her saviours
“Although I could not remember much, I really want to thank each and every rescuer for saving my life," Nur Hamidah said.
“I would not be here today without them. I will cherish this moment,” she said while holding back her tears.
Zaman Khan quickly quipped, “(You) were so little... (I) was looking for you for so long. I never expected to see (you) again...”
The retired cop said he had made various efforts to look for them but was not successful.
It was also a dream come true for one of the firemen involved in the rescue effort, as he also managed to meet up with Nur Hamidah yesterday, after he first attempted to reconnect with her earlier this month
The Fire and Rescue Department of Malaysia's wish to meet up with her started after she posted a photo on Facebook of herself on a stretcher after she was plucked from the rubble by a firefighter identified as Norizan Saad.
The photo was shared by the department on its Facebook page, and a message that went with the photo said a senior officer of the department, identified as Taufiq, had contacted her father.
Norizan now works in the department's corporate communication section.