PUTRA HEIGHTS FIRE: FAMILY RESCUED BY PASSER-BY AFTER ESCAPE

By Thivyamalini Ramalu

PUTRAJAYA, April 4 (Bernama) -- A software engineer has recounted with gratefulness how a stranger came to her family's aid after they had dashed to safety despite being injured in last Tuesday's gas pipeline fire in Putra Heights, Subang Jaya.

Mother of three Ooi Sui Li, 41, today shared her painful experience of the fire, which destroyed their home of 15 years and injured her family.

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“My husband and I were at home with our three children when the fire broke out at about 8.10 am. Our house is about 100 metres away from the explosion site. We managed to escape, crossed a drain and flagged a car down on the highway (next to the house).

“That is where we encountered a stranger, Cecilia, who stopped her car after seeing us in distress. She immediately sent us to Putrajaya Hospital where we were given immediate treatment,” she told Bernama when met at the hospital.

The house, which was declared a total loss, is where Ooi started her family with her husband, Loh Poh Heng, 42, in 2010. They are blessed with two sons, Jeremy Loh Wei Er, 14, Oliver Loh Wei Han, 11, and a daughter, Juliet Loh Wei Ning, six.

Ooi suffered fourth-degree burns while her husband and Wei Han had second- and third-degree burns respectively. All three are still warded at Putrajaya Hospital.

Recalling the horrifying moments, Ooi said she managed to grab her glasses before escaping but could not salvage any important personal documents. She is grateful that her family survived the incident.

“A lot of people asked me why we don't look sad, as we lost everything. At first, we could not comprehend what had happened. 

“We are just happy to be alive. The house is gone, but we are still here as a family; this is what matters most right now,” she said.

Ooi also expressed her deepest gratitude to Putrajaya Hospital staff for their care and support.

“Earlier, I was in a female ward, and my son (Wei Han), who was supposed to be in the paediatric ward, was with my husband in the male ward. Upon my request, the staff put us in one room so that we could take turns to take care of our son,” she said, adding that her two children had been discharged.

The Petronas gas pipeline blaze saw flames reaching over 30 metres high, with temperatures soaring to 1,000 degrees Celsius. It took nearly eight hours to be completely extinguished.

More than 100 people were injured while 87 homes were destroyed and 148 houses damaged in the inferno.

-- BERNAMA