FAMILY OF WOMAN WHO PERISHED IN FIRE MISSES HER COOKING

KOTA BHARU, Jan 26 (Bernama) -- “We not only lost a grandmother, but also a pillar who held our family together,” said Ahmad Bukhari Anton, 33, the grandson of an elderly woman who died in the blaze that destroyed her home in Jalan Tok Guru here yesterday.

Ahmad Bukhari said his grandmother, Fatimah Mat Said, 89, who once worked as a cook at the Pahang Palace, was dearly loved by everyone in the family, and the house that was razed was where they would gather during Hari Raya celebrations.

“We all surely miss her, especially her aromatic signature kurma chicken,” he told reporters at the scene today.

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Earlier, the remains of the elderly woman were laid to rest at the Jalan Merbau Islamic Cemetery at about 10 am, with more than 50 family members and acquaintances in attendance.

Recounting the tragic incident, Ahmad Bukhari, who resides in Pengkalan Chepa, said he received news of the fire by phone from his wife while he was at work.

“I rushed to my grandmother’s house and, upon arriving, saw firefighters trying to extinguish the blaze. My heart sank when she was found dead beneath the collapsed zinc sheets,” he said.

Yesterday, Bernama reported that the charred remains of the octogenarian were found after her house in Jalan Tok Guru here was destroyed by fire.

-- BERNAMA