ZARA Qairina Mahathir’s mother told the Coroner’s Court on Thursday that she was shocked when she received a 4.37am phone call informing her that her daughter had been found “berampai” on the floor before being taken to hospital.
Noraidah Lamat, 46, said the call from Ustaz Rezany on July 16, 2025, caused her to panic and cry, leaving her at a loss over Zara’s condition and how to get to Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH).
“I waited until daylight. Then I gathered the courage to go to Queen Elizabeth Hospital on my own without anyone accompanying me. It was raining at the time,” she said.
Noraidah said she was at home on the night of July 15 and into the early hours of July 16, while Zara was staying at the hostel.
She said she arrived at the hospital at about 9am and the first person she met was hostel warden Norasimah, outside the emergency ward.
“I was devastated. To me, at that time, my world went dark. I did not know what to say.
“Because outside the emergency ward, I was all alone, without any family members accompanying me. I immediately sent a WhatsApp message to Mahathir about Zara’s condition,” she said.
Noraidah said doctors and hospital staff explained Zara’s condition to her, but she could not understand or hear them clearly as she was in a state of panic.
She said a counselling teacher from the State Education Department (JPN) later tried to calm her and explain Zara’s condition again.
According to Noraidah, she either saw or was informed that Zara had been sedated and was dependent on a ventilator.
She was also informed that Zara’s brain had been deprived of oxygen for more than two hours and had suffered severe damage.
Throughout Zara’s treatment, Noraidah said those who came to speak to her included the school principal, chief warden and his wife, hostel wardens, police officers from the Papar District Police Headquarters, JPN teachers, an ustaz from the Papar District Education Office, JPN counselling teachers and Ustazah Siti Khadijah Ahmad from SMKA TDM.
“As far as I remember, among the things I was told was that Zara had fallen from the third floor of the hostel, all the students had gone to sleep at 11pm, and there were no eyewitnesses who saw the incident,” she said.
