A calico cat named Api Bunga has emerged as the sole surviving animal from a devastating house fire in Jalan Tok Guru, Kota Bharu, which claimed the life of an elderly woman and killed 70 cats and five dogs.
In a Facebook post, Api Bunga’s adopter Nor Izyan Syahida said the cat is currently undergoing treatment at a veterinary clinic. While still recovering physically and emotionally from the ordeal, her condition is reported to be gradually improving. It was also revealed that Api Bunga is pregnant.
Nor Izyan described the tragedy as one that caused the cat to lose her home, owner and animal companions overnight, saying her “entire world collapsed in an instant”, leaving her traumatised and injured.
She added that the cat was originally named “Mama”, but due to the urgency of the rescue, animal welfare groups temporarily renamed her Api Bunga, meaning “spark”. The name symbolises both the fire incident and her calico fur pattern, and it has since remained.
According to Sinar Harian, the fire broke out on Sunday at the home of Norhaeda Azahari, 51. Norhaeda said she was in Pengkalan Chepa attending to work matters when she received a call at around 6pm informing her that her house was on fire.
“When I arrived, the flames were already raging,” she said, adding that her 89-year-old adoptive mother, Fatimah Mat Said, perished in the blaze after failing to escape in time.
Norhaeda said 70 cats kept in cages inside the house were killed, along with five stray dogs she regularly fed that roamed the area. She added that her adoptive mother, though elderly and visually impaired, was still able to walk.
“I am still in shock because my loved one and all the animals I cherished were gone in an instant,” she said.
