N Yogaraja, 51, of Kuala Lumpur Fire and Rescue’s Canine Tracking Unit died on the spot from severe head injuries, according to NST Online.

His motorcycle crashed at a traffic light junction near Taman Sri Manja, Petaling Jaya South, while he was on his way to work at his office in Jalan Klang Lama, the report said.

Yogaraja was among the search and rescue team who looked for survivors of a 12-storey block at the Highland Towers condominium development in Ulu Kelang which collapsed in December 1993, killing 48 people.

He was involved in the rescue of Nur Hamidah, then 18 months old, who was trapped in the rubble.

Last week, Nur Hamidah, 24, met one of those in the rescue operation, former director of Bukit Aman Special Criminal Investigations Department Zaman Khan Rahim Khan, in a television interview with TV9.

Nur Hamidah’s mother, Umi Rasyidah Khoiruman, 43, was the only other survivor of the tragedy. Nur Hamidah, who has married, now lives in Surabaya, Indonesia.

She later met another fireman involved in the rescue effort, Norizan Saad.

The rescue effort at Highland Towers took nine days of round-the-clock work, and also involved teams from Britain, France, Japan, Singapore, and the United States.