Rabia Qadir Baig and her three daughters were on their way to Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport on Friday night for a flight to US capital Washington when the vehicle she was in overturned four times near Qatif. She was killed instantly.
Rabia’s husband, Mirza Qadir Baig, who received serious head injuries, was driving the Toyota Fortuner. The couple’s daughters, 10-year-old Maryam, six-year-old Sarah and three-year-old Fatima were also injured. Baig was only informed of his wife’s death on Tuesday.
Hundreds of Pakistanis, Saudis, Americans and Indians attended Rabia’s funeral prayers immediately after Asr on Wednesday at the Omar bin Abdul Aziz mosque near King Fahd Street in downtown Jubail.
Her father Tariq Said, husband Qadir Baig and uncle Saleem Bokhari were among those who helped lower her coffin into the grave.
Among those who attended the funeral was US citizen Dr. George Denic, the program manager at Jubail-based Saudi Arabian Bechtel Co., which employed Qadir Baig two years ago.
Qadir Baig, who was treated at Qatif Central Hospital until Tuesday, had his head in layers of bandage. He, however, remained calm and received the mourners with grace at the cemetery.
Rabia’s father was hugged and consoled by every single person who turned up for the funeral, grief etched on his face. A prominent member of the Pakistani community, Tariq Said has been a longtime resident of the Eastern Province.
“These last four days have been very hard on him,” said Rizwan Ahmad, a close friend of the family. “He just kept shuttling between various hospitals completing the formalities.”
Maryam and Sarah are in a stable condition after being treated at Dammam Central Hospital and then Jubail Royal Commission Hospital. They witnessed their mother’s final moments.
A close relative of the family said it was a heart-wrenching moment when they saw their mother in that state. “But then they had to see the closure,” he said.
Fatima still has not regained consciousness and was treated at Qatif Central Hospital’s intensive care unit before being transferred to Saad Hospital in Alkhobar on Wednesday morning. “She is still on a ventilator,” said Ahmad.
There were tears among those who knew the family very well. “These are very difficult moments,” said Syed Abul Hasan Jafri, a longtime friend and classmate of Rabia’s father. “I have not been able to sleep for the last three days. I keep thinking of my friend Tariq Said all the time. What must he be going through? God has put him under a severe test.”
Rabia’s friends in the United Sates too have expressed their condolences on the online edition of Arab News.
“I knew her very well,” wrote Ayesha Arif from Canton, Michigan. “She was a very good friend of my sister. She was a nice person and a very dedicated mother. Her daughters were very attached to her, especially little Fatima. I am so grieved to know about this heart-breaking accident. I wonder how the girls will do without their mother.”
Nazia Adil, also from Canton, wrote: “I don’t have enough words to express the loss. Rabia will always be very close to my heart, even if she is not here with us. Although she moved to Saudi Arabia, her heart was always with us in Canton. It was a given that she will move back in a few years. She was an integral part of our circle of friends and our group will never be the same without her.”
“I feel very bad for the family as Maryam is my best friend,” wrote family friend Hania Khan. “Rabia Aunty was my mother’s best friend. She was very sweet. When the family left for Saudi Arabia, we talked on Skype every weekend.”
